A Quarian's Tale: Beginnings
by Killerpossum
Summary: Even in her wildest dreams, Tali never expected her pilgrimage to go like this. Trying to save the galaxy, falling in love with a human, fighting geth at every turn...it sounds like a movie. She just hopes this one has a good ending. Covers a budding romance between Tali and Shepard during the hunt for Saren.
1. Chapter 1: A Deal Gone South

**Hey everyone! This is my first fan-fiction that I've written, so we'll see how it goes. I love the characters in this universe, and I wanted to try my hand at putting my own spin on the story. It'll follow pretty closely to the normal plot in the beginning, but I expect that will change as it progresses. I'm uploading the first two chapters at the same time, as they are a little shorter than the others I've written. The main focus will be a romance between Tali and Shepard. I would love your feedback to help improve my writing going forward! Hope you enjoy!**

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Tali was having a bad day.

The past few weeks had been nightmarish. What had started out as an exciting adventure quickly turned into a battle for her life. Hunted by a ruthless mercenary, persecuted by the very people she was trying to protect, and subjected to more firefights than she had expected to see in her lifetime, Tali was running on fumes. Despite the medical treatment she had received from the nice human doctor, her gunshot wound still throbbed painfully. She was just glad she had turned the perpetrator into ashes before he could finish the job. Not before he had killed her friend, unfortunately.

She sighed heavily, leaning against a stack of boxes for support. Dreaming of daring escapes and stowing away on a ship to barely escape a murderer sounds fun and all, but the reality was far harsher than she imagined. She just wanted this ordeal to be over and get on with her normal, boring pilgrimage. Her contact was more than a little late; maybe he had run into trouble. Maybe no one was coming. _Where is that bosh'tet?_

Suddenly, the door opened at the far end of the corridor. A turian, flanked by two armed salarians, sauntered into the room. He looked Tali up and down for a moment before strolling over to meet her. The two salarians remained at a distance, each with their weapons drawn, though not pointed directly at Tali.

She instantly felt that something was wrong. Why wasn't Fist a part of this exchange? She didn't feel like this cocky turian was the infamous Shadow Broker, so how was he connected? Another contact? Too many people were getting involved.

Before she could continue this train of thought, the turian broke the silence with a silky, two-toned voice. "Did you bring it?"

Tali didn't trust this guy nearly enough to give away her only bargaining chip. She might have just started her life outside of the Fleet, but she wasn't stupid. She subtly started to prepare one of her mines while coming up with something to stall for time. "Where's the Shadow Broker? Where's Fist?"

He stroked her arm in what she assumed he thought was reassurance, but really just made her skin crawl. "They'll be here. Where's the evidence?" he cooed.

Both of them would be here? After the deal was made? Wrong answer. Tali smacked his hand off her, certain that, whoever he was, this turian intended to betray her. She saw the bodyguards stiffen and start to approach them. She needed to act quickly.

"No way. The deal's off."

Tali saw the agent reach for his pistol and threw her explosive halfway between him and his goons. While it didn't do any real damage, it gave her enough time to scramble around a container and pull her shotgun off her back. She had been forced to kill around half a dozen people on this crazy quest, but never three at once by herself. She gritted her teeth and set up a kill zone, ready to blast the first thing to poke its head around the corner to smithereens.

What happened next took her completely by surprise. When she heard gunfire originating from behind her, she automatically assumed backup had arrived and swiveled her gun in its direction. To her amazement, it seemed the newcomers were shooting at the would-be assassins instead. The man at the front, a human, was shouting "Alliance Navy! We're here to help!" while riddling an assailant with dozens of bullets. _Not here to help him, I guess,_ Tali couldn't help think to herself.

After a few seconds, everything went quiet. A giant, red krogan stomped to the end of the hall, making sure reinforcements wouldn't arrive, while another turian and a human male crouched over the bodies. The other human, the one who had led the charge, knelt down and offered her a hand up. "Ma'am, are you okay?"

If she didn't have her mask on, she could have kissed this stranger. A few moments ago, she was sure she was going to die, but thanks to him, she was still breathing. Then, her anger over the whole debacle flared up, and she forgot his question. Taking his hand, she got up and marched to the dead assassin, glaring at what used to be his face.

"Fist set me up! I knew I couldn't trust him!"

Realizing that she actually had no idea who these people were, she whipped back around and kept as many of her rescuers in her line of sight as possible, her eyes darting between them. She didn't know why they had saved her. Maybe they were after the data as well, and were simply keeping her alive until she revealed its location. As she studied the apparent leader of the group, though, he didn't seem to give off the same vibe as the scum she had just been dealing with.

He held up his hands in an attempt to placate her. "I just want to make sure you're alright. Were you hurt in the fighting?"

She was taken aback. He seemed genuinely concerned about her. First that doctor in the wards, now him. Tali was starting to take a liking to humanity.

"I'm fine. I know how to look after myself." _That sounded a little harsh._ "Not that I don't appreciate the help." _There, that's a little better. They did just save your life._

The weirdness of this whole situation finally caught up to her, and Tali just stared at the man who fearlessly jumped in to help someone he had never met. "Who ARE you?"

"My name is Shepard. We heard you might have evidence that Saren's a traitor. That's something I need."

Tali struggled to focus and keep her guard up, but she was just so tired. Tired of running, tired of being shot at, and tired of being tired. She decided to trust these people; if they wanted to kill her or interrogate her, they could have done so easily by now. Plus, she owed them. "Then I have a chance to repay you for saving my life. But not here. We need to go somewhere safe."

The other human stepped forward. "We could go to the ambassador's office. It's safe there, and he'll want to see this anyway." His voice was softer than Shepard's, carrying a thin rasp through the air.

Tali nodded in agreement and stepped aside to let the others walk past, falling in beside Shepard. He looked over at her and gave a small smile. "You know, I don't actually know what to call you Miss…?"

"Oh, I'm, um, Tali. Tali'Zorah nar Rayya" she fumbled out. _Very smooth, Tali._

"Pleased to meet you miss Rayya."

"That's not actually…" She trailed off, unsure how to continue without making him seem stupid. "You can just call me Tali."

"Okay Tali." One side of his mouth rose higher than the other, making her blush a little. Humans didn't seem to be all that different from quarians from what she could tell, though of course their straight legs were downright bizarre. She assumed he was considered attractive; she certainly found him to be. _And Keelah, those eyes…_

Shepard interrupted her thoughts, gesturing to each of his companions. "This is Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, Garrus Vakarian, and Wrex." Each of them gave her a brief nod, which she returned.

She definitely needed a rest if she was finding a human…pleasing…to look at. But she could make it another hour or so to see this through. She wanted to help them, and she also wanted to show that quarians weren't simply liars and thieves.

Shepard strode to the door, clearly excited by possible proof of Saren's guilt. "Let's go show Udina what we found."

* * *

Tali stood in the docking bay, gazing at the magnificent ship she now belonged to. She didn't think a single craft in all the Fleet had as shiny a coat as the Normandy. Everything looked brand new…probably because they were. She couldn't wait to see what the drive core looked like, especially since the one she maintained on the Rayya was a decades old amalgamation from dozens of other vessels.

"Having second thoughts?" She looked over to see Shepard standing next to her, staring at what was now his ship. She could tell the way the Normandy had been stripped from Anderson bothered him, but a gleam of pride still found its way onto his face as he examined the sleek hull.

"I wasn't exactly planning on hunting a rogue Spectre for my pilgrimage, but this is the opportunity of a lifetime. I can't pass it up."

"Yeah, I know what you mean." Shepard leaned forward, resting his elbows on the railing. He seemed lost in thought, and Tali didn't know how to continue the conversation. Her heart started to beat a little faster as she wracked her brain for possible topics. _Why are you nervous, just talk to him._

"So…congratulations. On being a Spectre, I mean. And the ship." She saw him grimace slightly at that and immediately found her feet to be absolutely riveting. Her hands started to wring as she tried to recover. "I didn't…I'm sorry. I heard what happened. I just meant…"

"It's okay, Tali," Shepard interrupted her, giving an encouraging smile to show that he hadn't taken offence. She blushed furiously, thankful the mask hid most of her expressions. "I know what you meant, and I appreciate it."

"Yes. Good. I mean, you're welcome." She cleared her throat. This was a disaster; she needed to get out of this conversation before she made any more of a fool out of herself.

Shepard looked at her side, and a frown appeared on his face. "Are you feeling okay? Bullet injuries can take a while to heal, even with medigel. Believe me, I know."

"Who me?" _Who else, dummy._ "Oh, I'm good. I'm feeling much better, just needed some sleep. The suit breach was minimal, so thankfully no infections manifested." He gave her a weird look, and she realized he probably didn't know why she needed to be completely sealed off from any contact outside of a clean room. She didn't think she could coherently explain it right now, not with her scattered thoughts and his eyes looking into hers and why was it so hot…

"Well, I better go. I need to put stuff down. On the ship. My stuff." And with that, she scampered away before she said something else mortifyingly embarrassing, toting her meagre bag of belongings with her.

Shepard watched her practically flee into the airlock, chuckling to himself. The confidence he had seen in her earlier with the assassins and the politicians had vanished when confronted with this little chat; he found it absolutely adorable. He just hoped he hadn't signed her death warrant by allowing her to take part in this mission.

Letting his thoughts wander for a bit, he eventually made his way on to the Normandy. This vessel represented the finest feat of engineering the humans and turians could produce, and it was his to command. He still couldn't believe it.

The airlock let out a sharp hiss as he waited for the doors to open. He certainly had an eclectic bunch joining him on his hunt. A quarian, a turian, even a krogan…he never thought he would have one of those muscly dinosaurs serving under him.

As he stepped onto the bridge, he felt contentment rising up in his heart. The busy atmosphere of a crew about to take flight never ceased to give him a small thrill as he thought about blasting off into that infinitely dark ocean. One thought settled in his mind as he made his way to the galaxy map: _Welcome home, Shepard._


	2. Chapter 2: Settling In

Shepard exited the elevator to see Ashley deep in discussion with Garrus and Wrex. Curious, as Ash was one of the last people Shepard expected to willingly speak to the aliens onboard, Shepard walked over, catching the end of Ashley's comment. "…clearly more versatile. Since its not limited to a specific range, its more effective. That's a fact."

"If you never let your enemies get closer than a hundred yards before blowing their heads off, they'll never have a target to shoot back at. Even if they get in range, a sniper doesn't lose viability until they're within 10 yards anyway. If they get that close, you're not doing your job. A sniper rifle is the best selection for 99% of engagements."

"You're both wrong. Shotguns have the most power. If they get close, they're dead. If they stay away, you charge in close, they're dead. Plus, it's really hard to miss with them. In my 700 years, I've never been in a situation I couldn't handle with my shotgun and a little imagination."

Ashley let out a frustrated groan before looking at Shepard. "Come on Skipper, back me up. An assault rifle is obviously the best choice for a weapon. It's why its standard equipment for every soldier since it was invented."

Shepard paused, giving his answer some thought. "You know, I think pistols are actually the best weapon." To which all three shook their heads and walked away, Wrex muttering something about pyjaks under his breath. Shepard smiled to himself, glad to see these three getting along well enough to carry a conversation. He caught up to Ashley, hoping to talk about this, when she turned around and spoke first.

"Hey…you got a minute to talk?"

"Sure, I was coming down here to see how everyone was doing anyway. What's up?"

"Well…I just have some concerns. About the aliens. Vakarian and Wrex, specifically."

Shepard was a little disappointed. He knew how Ashley felt about aliens, especially turians, but he thought that this interaction indicated her willingness to give them a chance. Apparently not.

"Oh."

"I know things are different on the Normandy, but should they have full access to this ship? It's Alliance property, and it's not like it's just some run of the mill warship. This is the most advanced frigate we have."

"So, you're worried about them because they aren't Alliance? They signed on to take down Saren the same as the rest of us. That makes them our allies."

Shepard could tell she was getting a little irritated. Her brow started to furrow as she continued. "Just because they are our allies now doesn't mean they'll stay that way. I'm not being racist, just realistic. Members of their own species will always come first; it's human nature."

Shepard crossed his arms, now scowling himself. "First of all, that's a little ironic, don't you think? Secondly, is this going to be a problem? If you can't work with aliens, Williams, then I might have to have you transferred. I need my team to watch each other's backs. Understood?"

Ashley paled and snapped to attention. "Of course, Commander. You say jump, I say how high. There won't be a problem." Sweat started to bead on her brow. Apparently, the thought of a transfer really bothered her. Odd. He decided he would take another look at her service record and see if he could find some answers there.

"I appreciate you telling me this, Williams. Get to know them before you make a judgement." Satisfied with his reprimand, he turned to leave.

"Oh, and Williams?"

"Yes sir?"

"I do love my assault rifle."

Ash gave him a quick grin before turning back to her table filled with gun parts. Shepard crossed the wide hangar bay to where Garrus was doing something to the Mako. He jumped up when he saw Shepard, wiping some oil off on a rag before tossing it next to his toolbox. "Commander."

"Vakarian. Something I need to know about the Mako?"

"No sir, just checking a few things to make sure she's fully operational. Keeps the hands busy." Garrus saw the look of concern on Shepard's face and quickly reassured him. "I promise I know what I'm doing. I can even make repairs if, or when, it gets damaged in the field."

"Alright, I'll hold you to that." Shepard ran his hand over the side of the vehicle. He couldn't wait to give it a test run. "So, you okay with leaving C-Sec?"

"Definitely. In C-Sec, you get buried by mountains of red tape. As a Spectre, you make your own rules, catching bad guys as you see fit." Garrus' mandibles flared a little. "If I'm trying to take down a suspect, it shouldn't matter how I do it, as long as I do it." He paused, almost looking a little embarrassed, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "I'm just tired of being bogged down by protocol and procedure."

Shepard raised an eyebrow. "Those 'protocols and procedures' are in place to protect innocents. That's the number one job of an officer in any case, not taking down criminals."

Garrus gave a small sigh. "Yeah, I suppose you're right. It just feels like most of the time the law is protecting bad guys instead of normal citizens. I can't tell you how many times I've caught someone red-handed only for them to be released on a technicality." He shook his head. "Anyway, I wanted to thank you for this opportunity. I feel like we are going to be making a real difference in the galaxy."

"At the very least, it should be pretty interesting," Shepard said wryly. "Glad to have you here. I wouldn't have asked you to come if I didn't think you were up to the task." With a nod, Shepard made his way over to Wrex, who was standing by himself near the elevator.

"Shepard."

"Wrex."

And with that, he continued on his way to engineering.

The core was magnificent to look at. Every few seconds a pulse of energy would travel along the edge of the outmost cylinder, lighting up the room with a soft, white glow. The whole structure was constantly rotating clockwise, creating a mesmerizing spectacle that entranced Shepard for a moment. He snapped out of it as his Chief Engineer came over to speak with him.

"Hey Commander, you know that quarian, Tali? She's been spending all her time down here asking me questions about our engines." Shepard saw Tali standing at a console in front of the core. _So that's where she's run off to._ He shook his head. _Can't anyone get along on this ship?_

"Is she causing problems?" he sighed, mentally preparing himself for another lecture about racism and allies.

Adams looked surprised. "What? No! She's amazing! I wish my guys were half as smart as she is. Give her a month on board and she'll know more about the engines than I do!"

Now it was Shepard's turn to look surprised. "Oh! That's good to hear! I'm glad you're getting along." He looked over at Tali, who was still so engrossed in her data that she hadn't even noticed he'd come in. He smiled a little when he remembered their last conversation.

"You sure do have an eye for talent, Commander. I can see why you brought her. Anyway, is there something I can do for you?" Adams looked expectantly at Shepard.

Unfortunately, Shepard completely forgot what he came down here to say to Adams. So he said "That's all for now, thanks," to which Adams just shrugged and turned back to continue working. Shepard walked over to talk to Tali, watching her work for a second before interrupting her. Her fingers danced over the monitor as seemingly endless streams of figures and graphs winked in and out of existence. He couldn't imagine being able to process information that quickly; she really must be pretty smart. _And how is she typing that fast with only six fingers?_

Tali finally noticed him standing there and quickly turned around. "Shepard! This ship is amazing! Have you ever seen anything like this drive core? I can't believe you managed to fit it in a ship this small." Her voice was enthusiastic as she continued. "I'm starting to understand why you humans have been so successful. I had no idea Alliance vessels were so advanced!"

Shepard grinned, glad that she was enjoying herself. He had been a little worried Tali would have a hard time finding somewhere to fit in on the Normandy, but it seemed she had found her niche. "Well, this ship is actually a prototype designed by both humans and turians. We can't claim all the credit I'm afraid."

"It feels like a dream." Tali turned to look at the core. "I never would have imagined I'd get to be on a ship like this. Most of our ships back on the Fleet are decades if not centuries old. I know a couple that were around when we lost our home world to the geth."

Shepard couldn't help dropping his jaw slightly at that. "That was over 300 years ago. I can't believe you're still using ships that old. Humanity hadn't even learned how to fly over land by then, let alone through the stars!"

"We make constant repairs and upgrades with whatever materials our people bring back from their pilgrimages. It's one of the reasons why the Pilgrimage is so important to the quarians." She paused, and Shepard could see her eyes look down as her hands started to twist into knots. "Thank you for letting me come, Shepard. Getting to travel the galaxy while fighting the geth is a rare chance for one of my people. I might also be able to find a worthy gift to bring back while we are traveling. Just…thanks."

"Of course. From what I hear, you've already become an asset in Engineering." She looked uncomfortable with the praise, cocking her head to the side and speeding up the tempo of her wringing. "However, I am a little concerned about using you as part of the ground team." Tali stopped moving and looked straight up at Shepard.

"What? Why? Have I done something wrong?"

"No no, nothing like that. I did some research about quarians, making sure we had the right provisions for you and such, and I found some interesting things about your suits." He crossed his arms, worry etched into his face. "Could you really die if your suit was breached?"

Tali sighed with relief. She thought for sure he was going to kick her off the ship for being a quarian, especially when he mentioned doing "research." She figured he had discovered their unfair reputation and decided that he didn't want one of her kind pilfering through a military ship. She quickly explained her situation. "It's not as bad as it sounds. Our suits are specially designed to keep the risk of breaches to a minimum. Before I ran into you, I was shot with a polonium round that went straight through my side, but I only suffered a minor headache from exposure to both the bullet and the air. If a single breach really spelled doom, we would have all died out a long time ago."

Shepard chewed his lip for a minute before nodding. "Alright, you clearly know more about your own health than I do. If you say you're up for ground missions, I'll believe you." He smiled at her, and she instantly started fidgeting again. _Stop losing control every time he so much as looks at you!_ "We can use our first drop as a test run."

Shepard's omnitool beeped, and he glanced down at the notification. "I have to get back up to the CIC, but it was nice talking with you Tali. Let me know if you need anything." Giving another grin, he turned around and started walking back to the elevator

"See you later," Tali called after him lamely before looking back at her computer. At least it had certainly gone better than their last conversation. She didn't understand why she got so jittery around the Commander. She'd known him for less than two days, and he was a human. There was no way she had a crush on him. She was just grateful to him for saving her life. Right?


	3. Chapter 3: The Hunt for Dr T'Soni

**Hey guys! The next two chapters have to do with Therum, so I will probably post chapter 4 tomorrow. This story received much more attention than I was expecting, especially in the first week, so thank you for taking the time to read it! If you have any comments or questions feel free to let me know. I love getting feedback, positive or negative. Enjoy!**

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Dr. Liara T'Soni was one of the only leads Shepard had about Saren's plans. Her mother, Matriarch Benezia, was in cahoots with the ex-Spectre for unknown reasons based on the data Tali had brought. While the Council was unaware of the matriarch's location, her daughter was apparently searching for Prothean ruins somewhere in the Artemis Tau cluster. They had identified Therum as the most likely location, as it was the only planet that had reported sightings of Prothean artifacts. The Normandy was close to their location when Shepard arrived in the hangar bay.

Normally, he liked to bring three people with him on missions. It constituted a full squad, but it was also the max capacity of the Mako's surprisingly small cockpit. However, since it was likely they would be bringing back Dr. T'Soni for information, willingly or not, he decided to only take Tali and Garrus with him on this drop. Kaidan and Ashley had already proven their worth back on Eden Prime, and Wrex had had more than 700 years to perfect his art. Shepard wanted to see how these two handled themselves on what he assumed would be a relatively simple retrieval mission.

Both Tali and Garrus were already waiting for him by the Mako, weapons stored on their backs. _I'll need to get my team some better guns in the future_ , he thought, noting the relatively old and outdated models they sported. His own weren't that much better if he was being honest. They would have to make a supply run whenever he actually had any funding.

"Alright, Joker is going to drop us off about half a mile away from the dig site. We'll proceed in the Mako to our destination. Therum is extremely hot with severe volcanic activity, so we should anticipate lava on our path. Since Saren is also searching for Dr. T'Soni, there is a possibility that we will run into geth while planet-side." Tali almost seemed excited when he said that. "Garrus, you'll man the turret while Tali will provide technical support. I, of course, will be driving." He gave a slightly evil grin, and the other two exchanged glances. "Any questions?"

Garrus spoke up. "Just one. How are we getting off the Normandy? I thought she couldn't land directly on a planet's surface."

Shepard looked a little confused before his face lit up with an even nastier smile than before. "I take it you've never done a Mako drop before?" Both Tali and Garrus shook their heads. "Well, I won't spoil the surprise. Load up." Wrex overheard the conversation and let out a couple of booming laughs, doing nothing to ease Garrus' mind. He had a growing suspicion he knew what was about to happen, and he didn't like it. Not one bit.

As Garrus situated himself in the gunner's seat, Tali started bringing up relevant data from the Mako's systems on her omnitool. Like her companion, Tali also thought she knew what was coming and tried to distract herself by becoming familiar with the vehicle's readings. Unfortunately, everything was rather standard, so she finished her checks with plenty of time to spare. With nothing to do, she felt dread start to slowly take over her mind.

Joker's voice came over their comms. "Commander, we're arriving in thirty seconds. Everyone ready?"

"We're good to go."

Tali's legs started to bounce as the countdown commenced. _They're probably just messing with us, it'll be maybe a dozen feet off the ground. No way this thing could fall from much higher and us survive._ From the data she had just reviewed, she knew the tank's eezo core and propulsion systems could theoretically let them fall from a much greater height, but she ignored that thought. _Everything will be fine…_

"3…2…1…Have a nice fall, Commander."

And with that, the Mako launched itself out of the hangar bay, leaving the ship and Tali's stomach behind. For a split second, the view was spectacular. She could see miles upon miles of red rivers carving through the landscape. In the distance, a mountain range retained a healthy orange glow from the surrounding fire, regurgitating its own flames in an endless spurt of color. Then, gravity caught up to her, and she felt her voice vanish. If she could have caught her breath, she probably would have been screaming. They plummeted toward the ground, the unyielding rocks coming to meet them faster and faster. She had a death grip on her seat and the door handle, using all of her willpower not to vomit. She heard Garrus give out a low growl, letting her know she wasn't the only uncomfortable one. Beside her, Shepard was laughing his head off, completely unperturbed by the sensation of free fall that afflicted his squad. Right as it seemed they would all become flattened mush, Shepard activated the thrusters, causing everyone's heads to jerk around wildly. After a few seconds of this, a loud thud reverberated through the hull as the Mako came to an unwieldy stop.

Tali felt like she had just run a marathon. Her heart was stuck in her throat, still beating a million miles an hour. She slowly extricated her hands from their vice grips, pain shooting up her arm from where she had clenched too tightly. She took several deep breaths, and her pulse began to lower itself to a more normal range.

Shepard looked at her, a big, stupid grin on his face. "Fun right?"

She didn't respond. Behind them, Garrus poked his head down and glared at Shepard. "Is that standard procedure?"

"Yep, fairly typical. Everyone goes through a drop before they even finish basic."

"You humans are crazy," Garrus muttered. Tali nodded in agreement.

Any witty comebacks by the Commander were cut short as Joker interjected through the radio. "Hey Commander, I'm picking up something weird heading your way. I think it might be a geth ship."

As if on cue, a dropship zoomed overhead. It hovered a few dozen feet off the ground and deposited two car-sized gifts. As the hunks of metal started to unfold themselves, Shepard yanked the wheel to the right and sped off up a cliff. "Tali! Tell me anything you can about those things! Garrus, open fire!" Garrus replied with a boom from the Mako's cannon. The closest machine's shields flashed on impact but remained intact. The geth returned fire as Tali cycled through her scans' input, leaving two large craters where the tank had rested a second earlier.

"Looks like it should take maybe four hits to destroy them, based on that shot," Tali said. Shepard swerved to the left to avoid another pulse, causing Tali to slam against the door. Garrus landed another direct hit in the meantime; Shepard was glad he decided to bring him along.

As he continued to dodge the incoming fire, he had an idea. "Tali, how much do those things weigh?"

She cocked her head at him. "They're actually rather light. One of the driving points in the design of the geth was mass transportation of units, so- "

"Good," Shepard cut her off, flooring the gas as he redirected towards the armatures. "Garrus, keep hitting that same one! Use the machine gun if you have to!" A pepper of bullets started spitting at the machine while Shepard flew at its companion. With the distance closing, it became easier for both sides to land hits. Shepard used the thrusters to jump over one shot only to careen directly into another blue flare, almost completely fracturing their shields and knocking them several feet to the left midair. Despite this, Garrus managed to send one final missile at his target with explosive effect.

"Shepard! The shields won't hold up if we get hit again!" Tali's fingers flew as she tried to recharge their defenses with any available power from non-critical systems.

It was close, but the Mako collided with the geth right as a burst of energy shot out, flying harmlessly into the sky. The armature buckled from the force and bounced once before coming to a rest in the boiling lava, slowly sinking from sight in a smoldering heap. _Glad that worked._

"Guess Saren found Dr. T'Soni too," Shepard sighed. "I was hoping this would be an easy one."

"That wouldn't be any fun," Garrus said, his mandibles twitching.

"I could do with a little less fun," Tali stated, rubbing her shoulder.

Luckily, the drive to the site was quiet. They had either killed a scouting party or the geth did not believe anyone else was coming. Leaving the Mako behind, they walked up a narrow ramp and came to what seemed to be the entrance to the ruins. Shepard counted down with his fingers then burst through the door, clearing the room with his rifle. Tali followed close behind with her shotgun primed while Garrus covered their flank. They proceeded through the long hall and ended up on a series of catwalks. The metallic structure spider-webbed throughout the large cave they now found themselves in.

While they were still adjusting to their new environment, Tali's audio sensors picked up something from a couple of bridges away. She caught a glint of steel and screamed "Look out!" before barreling into Shepard, knocking them both down safely behind the wall. A shot cracked as they fell, ricocheting off the railing just above them. Garrus quickly scoped down his sights before the sniper could adjust and buried a bullet in its head. Tali pushed herself off Shepard and peered between the slats. She saw more geth pop up and start firing at their position, including a couple of rocket troopers. They were effectively pinned down as a constant barrage of missiles assailed their cover, slowly weakening the metal plates while more geth advanced towards them.

Tali suddenly got an idea. She opened her omnitool and attempted to access one of the rocket troopers programming. Her previous encounter had given her some insight into geth software structure. She knew anything she did would be rewritten in a few seconds, but if her bug could tamper with its friend-foe detection…

One of the geth turned and fired a point-blank rocket into the back of its friend, blowing both of them up in the process. The absence of missiles allowed Garrus and Shepard to start picking off targets of their own. Tali sabotaged one of the snipers, leaving it vulnerable for Garrus, before whipping around the corner and ripping a geth to shreds with her shotgun. In less than a minute, all of the geth were sparking husks strewn about the ground. Tali carefully approached a couple that looked less damaged, giving them clean shots through the head to make sure.

Shepard straightened up, surveying the destruction they had wrought. "I have to say I am impressed. Out of all my time I've spent in the navy, I've never had a unit feel this cohesive on its first engagement." He looked over at Tali. "And by the way, did you make that geth go berserk?"

She grinned, her eyes lighting up. "I thought I saw a weakness in their firewalls before, so I tested my theory." She gestured at the blackened remains of her victims. "Seems like I was right."

Shepard laughed. "Isn't hacking a geth supposed to be impossible or something?"

She blushed a little. "It's just that there hasn't been a lot of contact with the geth. I'm sure there are plenty of people who could have come up with that program given my data." _Tali, just take the compliment, what are you doing._ "But I don't think anyone has done it before."

"Yeah, well, I took out more than either of you just now. I think I'll have to tell Wrex and Williams about this, see what they think about my sniper coming out on top." Garrus hoisted his weapon over his shoulder, looking very pleased with himself.

"Before you go and get a big head, you would still be pinned down if Tali hadn't taken care of those rockets for you," Shepard replied. "She also knocked me out of the way of a bullet right in the beginning. Probably would have fried my shields before we'd even started." He smiled at her. "I think she wins this time."

Tali felt her face burn and missed the rest of the conversation. She wasn't used to being complimented; her father certainly didn't give out praise lightly. Her whole life had been spent trying and failing to please him. Everything she did, no matter how impressive, never seemed to be good enough. Shepard's words felt undeserved to her, but they also felt…nice.

She heard Shepard order them to move out and followed him down the path. After a few minutes of exploration, a rusted elevator appeared to be their only way down. "I'm sure this won't break or anything," Garrus muttered. Shepard just shrugged and pushed the down button. Surprisingly, the elevator sprang to life and immediately started to descend. Unsurprisingly, it got about halfway down before screeching to a halt, sparks erupting from the fuse box.

"At least it didn't fall," Shepard said lightly, giving the door a couple of pulls. "It looks like there's a platform a couple of feet down that we can reach. Garrus, help me get this door open?" Together, they created an opening big enough for Tali to slip through. She found a straight piece of metal that had disconnected from a railing and jammed it in the crack, allowing Shepard and Garrus to drop down with her.

"Guess we'll have to find another way out," Garrus said, looking up at the catwalks a hundred feet above them.

"What, can't climb?" Shepard asked jokingly, eyeing the sheer rock face in front of him. There didn't appear to be any usable handholds, and none of them had brought climbing gear.

"Shepard, there's some sort of blue glow coming from over there." Tali pointed along the platform. "And for the record, I can't climb either."

The walkway turned around a small lump in the side of the cave and revealed an interesting sight. A field of pure blue light covered the entrance to a small room. The technology inside looked unlike anything Tali had ever seen; for lack of a better word, it looked alien. And frozen inside the field, hovering a foot off the ground, was an asari.

Her haggard appearance and hollow eyes indicated she might have been in this predicament for quite some time. As the squad approached, her eyes widened in surprise, desperation etched into her face.

Shepard spoke first. "Are you Dr. T'Soni?"

The asari tried to reply, but only hoarse noises came out before she started coughing. Clearing her throat, her second attempt had better results. "Yes, my name is Liara T'Soni." Her face fell into a more guarded state. "That's the second time a stranger has showed up here knowing my name. The first tried to kidnap me. Who are you?"

"My name is Shepard. I'm a Council Spectre. We were sent here in order to learn what information you may have about Matriarch Benezia. I understand she is your mother?"

Liara looked thoroughly confused. "My mother? I don't understand. I haven't heard from her in years. Why would a Spectre be interested in her?" She paused, closing her eyes for a second before shaking her head. "I'm sorry…I've been here a while now. It's…hard to think straight." She squinted at the three of them. "You are…real, right? This isn't some sort of hallucination? Please…" Her voice broke. "Please be real."

Shepard's face softened. "Are you okay, ma'am? How long have you been down here?"

"I don't know…maybe a few days?"

"We'll get you out of there real soon, okay Dr. T'Soni?" Shepard said soothingly. Liara visibly relaxed under Shepard's reassurances. Tali noticed a striking similarity between this situation and her own rescue. Apparently, the Commander had a soft spot for people in need.

"Okay. And, Liara's fine."

"Okay Liara. Now, how do we get this barrier down?"

Liara used her head to point at a series of screens and buttons behind her. "That's the panel that controls this force field. I activated it in order to stop the geth from getting me…I guess I did something wrong, however, as I am now trapped. I don't know another way into this room besides this entrance…"

"We'll figure it out. We're going to keep exploring, see if we can find some way around this."

They turned to walk away as Liara called out a warning. "Be careful! There was a krogan with the geth. I think he's their leader somehow."

The three exchanged glances before continuing on their way.

"First the geth, now a krogan? Saren's becoming almost as diverse as the Normandy," Garrus quipped.

"Hm." Shepard turned to Tali. "Think we could convince a couple of geth to join our crew?"

She knew he was joking, but she still glared at him before cocking her shotgun and walking ahead.

A shot rang out, ripping through the air where her head had been a moment beforehand and pierced through Shepard's shields, passing straight through his shoulder. The impact knocked Shepard back, but he shrugged it off and dove behind a nearby rock. Garrus joined him while Tali was forced to take cover behind a crate slightly ahead of her companions.

"Shepard! Are you hurt?" Tali called out as gunfire erupted from multiple locations.

"I'm fine. Tali, see if you can do that trick you did earlier. Garrus, I want that sniper down NOW." He paused, and Tali saw a grenade fly from his position and sail over her head. A few seconds later, an explosion rocked the cave, and a smoking piece of geth landed next to Tali's foot. "I'll watch your flank Tali, just make sure they don't get to close to us."

"Got it." Tali quickly queued up her hack before priming one of her mines. She waited for the telltale sounds that her program had worked before standing up to throw. To her surprise, a geth was standing almost face to face with her on the other side of her cover. Though it was momentarily distracted by its fellow's betrayal, she had maybe a split second before it riddled her full of holes. So, she chucked her mine right at its face and threw herself as far away as possible. Shrapnel struck her several times, but luckily her shields held up. As she scrambled back into cover, a bullet kicked up the dust next to her hand.

"Shit! Tali!" Shepard shouted. He sprinted towards her, suppressing the geth with a hail of fire. Tali was sure the sniper was going to finish what he started, but Garrus got to him first, using Shepard's charge as bait. Shepard slid next to her, panting heavily. His shoulder was caked with blood, but medigel had stopped the bleeding. "Are you hurt?!"

"I'm good Shepard. It didn't get past my shields." She would have been touched at his concern, but her adrenaline kept her focused on the battle. She quickly brought up another favorite trick of hers on her omnitool. "Shepard, I'm going to overload the last two. It should give you enough time to finish them off. You too, Garrus. Ready?" Shepard nodded, and Garrus flashed them a thumbs-up. "Now!"

The machines jerked wildly as sparks flew from their bodies. Shepard and Garrus simultaneously took off their heads, and silence descended once again. Tali felt her pulse slowly stop pounding in her ears and return to where it was supposed to be. Shepard stood up and offered her a hand, which she gladly took. Then she remembered that he'd been shot and quickly inspected his wound. "How bad is it?"

He rolled his shoulder back and forth with a couple of grimaces. "It'll be fine for now. I'll have Chakwas look at it when we get back just to be sure. Neither of you took any?" Tali and Garrus shook their heads. Shepard nodded before looking around. "Come on, we've gotta find a way forward."

After about ten minutes of searching, all they found was some dead geth, an inactive mining laser, and rocks. Something about the laser caught Tali's eye. Apparently, it was still functional. She started typing away on her omnitool while Garrus approached Shepard.

"I don't see anything we can use. Should we try backtracking?"

Shepard sighed. "It's all we can do, though I don't remember seeing any other paths, forward or back. Why'd you have to jinx the elevator, huh?"

Garrus laughed. "Hey, we were all thinking it."

Shepard walked over to the steel beams that made up the bottom of the elevator shaft, giving it a couple of pulls. "Maybe we could use these to- "

He was cut off as an ear-splitting roar echoed through the cave. Shepard whipped around, fumbling to get his gun off his back, while Garrus jumped so badly he fell over backwards. After everything stopped shaking, they could see Tali standing frozen by the laser. A large hole had been carved underneath the wall where Liara was imprisoned.

Shepard slowly put his gun away and approached Tali. "Tali…what just happened?"

"I…the laser was still online, so I-I wanted to look at th-the logs…" she stammered. She hadn't moved at all. "When I connected, I think I…um…resumed its last activity." She looked at the hole she had made. "Which was…mining."

Shepard looked at the hole again. Then he burst out laughing. Tali just stared at him while Garrus took equal turns staring at him and glaring at Tali. "I can't believe I didn't think of that," he got out, wiping away some tears.

"Shepard, WE could have been standing there. Spirits, we WERE standing there a few seconds ago. We could have DIED." Tali shoulders slumped. She knew Garrus was right. Unintentional or not, she had endangered both of them. She couldn't fathom how close she had come to killing all of them with her curiosity. She waited for the harsh reprimand she knew was coming from the Commander.

"Just let me know the next time you poke around a giant weapon, alright?" Shepard said.

Tali jerked up. "O-Of course."

"Good. Now, let's see where this leads!" And with that, Shepard strode into the breach, making Garrus and Tali have to jog to catch up.

Tali couldn't believe that was it. She had expected at the very least to be asked to leave the crew. Maybe even put in jail back on the Citadel. Almost killing a Spectre had to have serious repercussions in Council space. She looked at Shepard, his face set with determination and just a hint of humor. Tali couldn't figure out why this human was so different from everyone else she had met on her journey. All she knew was that getting on the Normandy was the right decision.


	4. Chapter 4: Lunch

The elevator shook as another tremor reverberated through the ruins. Shepard sighed inwardly. _Add it to the list of things that have gone wrong on this mission._ At least they had acquired their objective. Though she had been trapped for days, Liara seemed more than capable of helping escape this hellhole. Which was good; Shepard had a feeling they could use her help before this was over.

He surreptitiously watched Tali as she checked her weapon for the umpteenth time. Her performance had more than impressed him. He had expected Garrus to be able to hold his own, having been both a part of the military and a security officer, but he wasn't sure how Tali would do. Unless the average quarian had intensive combat training as well as genius level technical expertise, he suspected there was something special about her upbringing. Beneath her mask, he could just make out two glowing, silver orbs and what looked like the end of a nose. He was intrigued. She was a mystery, in more ways than one. He felt his eyes drift a bit. _And she's not bad looking…_

Tali looked straight at him, and he jerked his gaze down to his gun. _Wow. You're in the middle of a mission and you were checking out one of your team? Focus!_

Their ride stopped at the top level, and Shepard took a few steps before noticing a fully armored krogan coming his way. Everyone aimed their weapons at him, and Shepard noticed Liara start glowing blue. The krogan, however, appeared unperturbed. Four geth units entered as well, flanking the behemoth while the room trembled from the seismic activity.

The krogan looked like he wanted to say something. Shepard wasn't going to give him that chance. He got all of his remaining grenades, pulled the pins, and chucked them directly at the dinosaur. Three bounced off him and landed at his feet, while the last struck him in the head and nestled itself in his collar. His eyes widened as he realized what was about to happen. Pieces of krogan armor and body parts flew everywhere a split second later. The two closest geth were also consumed by the explosion, and Garrus and Tali made short work of the remaining units.

"Let's go!" Shepard shouted, jumping over the small crater he had made. Chunks of the roof started to fall as they sprinted to the exit. Shepard paused, making sure everyone passed him before picking up the rear. He wasn't going to let anyone be left behind. Not like Akuze. Never again.

The bright glow blinded him as he flew out of the tunnel. He felt a huge whoosh of air propel him forward a few more feet when the entrance collapsed completely. _That was too close._ He put his hands on his knees as he sucked air into his depleted lungs. Once he recovered, he went ahead and called Joker to their position. Liara was on her knees with Tali crouched next to her, making sure she was alright. Garrus came up to him as he surveyed what was almost their tomb.

"Still excited to be working with a Spectre, Garrus?"

"Not quite sure it's dangerous enough, if I'm being honest," Garrus replied in a deadpan. "But at least the view is good." They looked out over the burning landscape, taking a moment to appreciate the chaotic beauty resplendent before them.

"Liara is going to be fine," Tali said, walking up beside them. "As far as I can tell, at least."

Shepard turned to her with a small smile. "And what about you? Still glad you're here?"

"On this planet? No, not really. It's way too hot." Garrus chuckled. Shepard was glad that he seemed to be over Tali almost killing them earlier. "But as part of the Normandy? Definitely."

Shepard let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. For some reason, the thought of Tali leaving put him off more than he cared to admit. "I'm glad to see neither of you are going to leave at the first port we come to," he said wryly. He pushed himself off the rail. "Come on, let's get ready for pickup."

* * *

"Thanks for patching me up, Doc." Shepard pulled his shirt back on, covering the fresh gauze on his left shoulder.

"No need to thank me, Commander. It's what I'm here for." Dr. Chakwas gave him a warm smile before turning back to her desk. She was extremely competent and seemed to actually care for her patients. Shepard was glad to have someone like her watching over his crew.

His mind-meld with Liara hadn't produced any new information, unfortunately, so they were left with their current leads. Liara herself was sleeping in the med-bay; her time on Therum had taken its toll, as had the mind-meld. Unsure where he wanted to head next, he decided to grab some food from the mess hall. Not expecting to find anyone eating at this odd hour, he was surprised to see Tali sitting at the table.

"Hey Tali," he called, causing her to jump. "Mind if I join you?" After a pause, she shook her head, and he loaded up his tray before sitting down across from her. Now that he was facing her, he could see the tube that was attached to the colored circle at the bottom of her mask. A colorless paste filled the container.

"Ah, is that your dinner?" Tali gave a small nod. "It looks…appetizing." She giggled a little at that. Shepard could tell this embarrassed her for some reason, so he tried to put her at ease. "It can't be all that much worse than what I'm having." He let some of the gray slime on his fork slip off onto his plate for effect. "This tastes like a turian's sock. Hang on, do turians wear socks?" Tali laughed some more. Pleased with his banter, Shepard decided to dig in to his own meal.

After a little bit, Tali took out the now empty tube and placed it in one of her pockets. She looked down at the table as she started talking to him. "I'm sorry I didn't say anything. I know it looks weird when I have a tube sticking out of my mask while I'm talking. Most of the crew haven't had much contact with quarians, so I…try to eat when no one's here." Shepard saw her eyes move up to meet his for a second. "I know it's silly…"

"No, I understand." Shepard let his fork rest on his plate. "But you don't have to worry about that on the Normandy. No one is going to make fun of you or think less of you because of how you have to eat. And if anyone does give you a problem, you come see me about it." Tali gave him a nod. "In fact, from now on, we are going to have lunch together."

"Oh no, that's okay, I-I could have a shift then or you could be busy…"

"Tali, I'm the Commander of this ship. I don't think schedules are going to be a problem."

Tali started fidgeting. "I…wouldn't mind doing that. But, surely you have other things you need to be doing."

Shepard shrugged. "Everyone needs to eat." He smiled. "It's a date." He saw her freeze and quickly backtracked. "That's just an expression, I didn't mean…you know what I meant." He shook his head as he picked back up his fork. "Anyway, now it's your turn to talk to me while I eat. Tell me about yourself, Tali."

"Um…well, I was born and raised in the Migrant Fleet, as I'm sure you know."

"What was that like?"

Tali thought for a second. "It was like being a part of a giant family. Resources are shared freely among my people. We don't have a need for currency since most of us don't actually own any personal belongings besides our suits."

Shepard was stunned. "Really? Nothing at all?"

Tali shrugged. "Space is so limited in the Fleet that we can't afford the luxury most of the time. My room on the Rayya was just big enough for my cot. I couldn't even stand up straight inside."

Shepard stared at her, his food forgotten. "I can't imagine living like that. Where I grew up, we had miles and miles of land to run around on. I remember one time me and my sister-"

He stopped, feeling the smile that had started to form leave his face. Tali looked at him expectantly. He cleared his suddenly dry throat. "Sorry, that's…a story for another time." He gave her a wan smile. "I interrupted. Please continue."

Tali's curiosity burned like fire, but he clearly didn't want to talk about it, so she picked up where she left off. "It wasn't so bad. The only time I spent in my room was when I slept. Everyone always had a job to help maintain the ship. I worked in Engineering mostly, since that's my specialty."

"How did you get combat training? Were you a marine before you left, or are you going to be when you get back?"

Tali shifted in her seat. "My father is…an admiral. He made sure I knew how to handle myself before I was sent out."

"So basically, if you don't make it back from this crazy quest of mine, I'm going to have a quarian admiral waiting to gut me?" Shepard asked jokingly.

"Something like that," Tali replied quietly. "I should probably get to bed now, but I'll, um, see you for…lunch tomorrow?" She stood awkwardly next to the table, looking unsure about what to do.

"See you then. Goodnight." Shepard couldn't help but watch her walk away. He found her fascinating. Every little thing he learned about her was interesting, and she seemed like a genuinely nice person. Lunch just became a much more exciting meal.

* * *

Garrus entered the mess after having spent all morning fixing the damage Shepard had done to the Mako. Ashley, Kaidan, and Wrex were already eating at the center table. Ashley beckoned to him when she saw him. "Hey Vakarian. I have a question for you."

Garrus grabbed one of the dextro provisions Shepard had acquired before sitting down across from her. "Okay. Somehow I feel like this is going to be entertaining."

"As our resident ugliest alien, beating out even the red giant over there, would you do it with Liara?" She jerked her thumb at the other two at the table. "These two already said yes."

Kaidan looked offended. "No I didn't! I definitely said no!"

"But your eyes said yes, LT."

"I don't believe this," Kaidan muttered while Wrex chuckled at his discomfort.

"So, how 'bout it Vakarian?"

"If you want to ask the ugliest alien, I'm afraid you'll have to find a mirror," he said dryly.

Kaidan and Wrex got a good laugh out of that one. Ashley couldn't help letting a small grin escape. "Not bad, rock face. But you still didn't answer my question."

"If you're jealous Williams, don't worry. There's plenty of turian to go around if you want some." Ashley made a disgusted noise deep in the back of her throat and chose to attack her food instead of replying. Kaidan was busy trying to cough up a bit of sludge he had inhaled, while Wrex gave Garrus a friendly slap on the back. It almost made him slam his face into his plate, but he knew Wrex meant well.

The elevator opened as Shepard and Tali stepped out, laughing about something themselves. Shepard gave them a nod, but he didn't sit down with them like usual. Instead, after he had picked out which color of mush to eat today, he followed Tali over to a table at the far end of the mess. Kaidan glanced around at his companions, a small smirk on his face. "What do you think is happening over there, huh?"

"Lunch," Wrex said. Kaidan rolled his eyes. Garrus saw Ashley's eyebrows furrow slightly as she looked over at the Commander. _Oh ho ho. So THAT'S why she was asking us about Liara._ He considered teasing Ashley about Shepard, but decided he didn't want to get into a fistfight today.

Ashley mumbled some excuse and left, slowly wandering over to Shepard and Tali. Kaidan did a little dance with his eyebrows but didn't say anything. Garrus changed the subject. "So you're both biotics, right?"

Ashley plopped herself down next to Tali. "Hey Skipper. Tali, right?" Tali nodded silently, causing Ashley to notice the tube sticking out of her face. "Is that how you have to eat?" Ashley saw Shepard give her a warning glare and slightly shake his head. _What does he think I'm gonna do, pick on her? I'm not heartless._

Tali didn't reply. Ashley could tell she was making Tali uncomfortable. Her youngest sister clammed up whenever she felt insecure, just like Tali was doing now. She had beat the snot out of people for embarrassing her little sister, intentional or not. Ashley felt her normally hawk-like gaze soften.

"That sucks. But it's not weird or anything. Is it Shepard?" Ashley glared at Shepard like she was accusing him of teasing Tali. He looked a little shocked, but he quickly murmured his assent. She turned back to Tali. "How about after you're done eating you let me take a look at your gun? I'll make sure everything's still working after the sh-crap on Therum." _Seriously Ash? This quarian has killed people. You think the word shit is gonna faze her?_ Still, swearing in front of Tali just felt wrong to Ashley for some reason.

Tali gave a quick nod, speaking for the first time. "I would like that. Thanks, Williams."

"Just call me Ash."

A distinct clang of metal on metal rang from the large, center table. Ashley turned to see Kaidan and Wrex glowing blue, facing off on opposite ends. Hovering in between them were a pair of…spoons? Garrus cheered from the sidelines as the silverware, wielded by invisible hands, clashed time and again, neither gaining ground. However, after a few more seconds, Wrex let his spoon slip too far to block a feint. Kaidan seized the opportunity and drove his weapon home into Wrex' nose.

Garrus raised Kaidan's hand in victory to the cheers of the crew, while Wrex grumbled about sheer power versus fine motor skills. Ashley clapped along with everyone else, then turned back to Shepard. "By the way, where are we going next?"

"Feros. For some reason, the geth are interested in the colony. We need to find out why."


	5. Chapter 5: Fai Dan

**Last week, the story got over a thousand views! I'm glad you guys seem to be liking it; thank you so much for the support, especially to everyone who is following this! As always, feel free to let me know what you think. This week is going to be another double chapter week, as both of them follow the same plot-line on Feros. I struggled with deciding what to keep and what to gloss over during this mission, so we'll see how it goes. Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

The docking port still worked, though no one had answered their hails as they approached. It was unsurprising; the distress call had been sent almost a week ago. Tali doubted they would find anyone still alive at this point.

Tali met Wrex, Kaidan, and Shepard in the airlock as Joker finished landing. As the doors hissed open, Wrex almost leaped onto the platform, a grin on his face. _Guess he's been cooped up too long,_ Tali thought to herself. Stepping out as well, she immediately felt the wind threaten to knock her sideways. The colony had made its home within the crumbling skyscrapers left by the Protheans. The resulting high altitude helped with the suffocating cloud of dust found closer to the planet's surface, but it also left inhabitants exposed to a harsh, constant current of air.

A man stood waiting for them at the far end of the docking bay. He made no sign that he saw them coming. He just stared at the wall until they were within earshot.

"Um…hello?" Shepard said tentatively.

The man snapped his attention to Shepard immediately. "We saw your ship. You must go see Fai Dan." He didn't say anything else, continuing to stare blankly at Shepard.

Shepard glanced at Kaidan, who shrugged. "Who is Fai Dan? Is he your leader or something?"

"Yes. He wants to speak with you. He's through there." The man gestured behind him without looking. "You must go see Fai Dan."

And with that, a rocket drove itself into the man's back and exploded, covering the squad with blood. Kaidan managed to tweak the trajectory of the second missile just enough so it flew past them harmlessly instead of crashing into Wrex' face. The krogan let out a roar and charged straight at the shooters. His body flared with power as he used the crate the rocket troops were hiding behind to fling them up against the wall. Tali got her first clear look at the enemy as they sailed through the air. _Geth._

Wrex finished off the ones he had pinned while Kaidan threw the last unit off the walkway. It was eerily silent as it plummeted to its death. "Finally, some target practice. Thought I was going to get rusty following you around, Shepard," Wrex said, rolling his shoulders.

"If this goes anything like last time, you'll be fine," Shepard replied. He wiped the blood off his face, staring at the remains of their welcoming party. "I guess we should go see this Fai Dan."

They had a couple of encounters as they continued through the ruins, including some new type of geth that hopped from surface to surface as if possessed. Tali really didn't like those. They reminded her too much of spiders.

Eventually, they came across a makeshift barrier. The two people who were supposed to be guarding it didn't even see them come out; they were too busy arguing with each other about something. Tali shook her head. _If we had been geth, they would already be dead. Keelah, how did they make it this long?_

Shepard approached the pair. Neither paid him any attention, continuing to talk about who should go geth hunting and who should stay. "Excuse me? Are you colonists from Zhu's Hope?"

The woman looked at him briefly before pointing vaguely towards the rest of the camp. "Yes, go speak to Fai Dan. He can tell you more." She resumed her conversation as if Shepard hadn't showed up.

 _Something feels very…off about these people,_ Tali thought. They had to ask for directions to Fai Dan several times as they walked through the remnants of the colony. Plenty of people seemed fairly normal in their responses, but everyone always ended their sentences with the mantra of "Go see Fai Dan."

Fai Dan himself appeared to be a fairly normal human. "Someone actually came for us. Thank you for showing up when you did," he said gratefully.

"You're a little late." The woman standing next to him crossed her arms, clearly unimpressed with their small company.

"Arcelia! Sorry, the geth have been-"

A bullet buried itself in the wall next to Arcelia's head. "Watch out! We've got geth in the tower!" Everyone took cover as geth started converging on the encampment.

Tali got to work overloading the closest units' shields. "Wrex, when you see an opening, charge ahead to the next cover. We'll provide suppressing fire," Shepard commanded. _An opening, huh? Let me see…_

A cloaked geth suddenly picked up its ally and sent it flying into the concrete wall. The confusion in the ranks gave Wrex enough time to reach the entrance to the tower. From that position, the team slowly pushed the seemingly endless onslaught back enough to allow them to get inside the tower. They found themselves engaged in a stalemate on the staircase, as neither side could advance without getting slaughtered. Tali felt Kaidan tap her on the shoulder.

"Hey, throw one of your mines up the stairs."

She cocked her head to the side. "They're too far away. I don't think even Wrex could make that throw."

"I wanna try something." Tali shrugged, figuring she had plenty of mines to spare and nothing else was happening. She chucked it as far as she could, watching as it started to fall short of its goal. _Like I knew it would…_

A blue border encapsulated her mine, giving it new life. The little disc bobbed and weaved its way slowly upwards until it was directly over the enemy line. The blue light disappeared, and the mine dropped out of sight. An explosion sent geth flying over the side of the stairs. Shepard and Wrex used the opportunity to rush the remaining enemies, securing the stairwell. Tali gave Kaidan a hi-three before moving up to meet the others.

Beyond their new cover, Tali could see the bottom of a dropship through a hole in the roof. One last push would enable them to harass the ship enough to make it withdraw. However, a sizeable amount of geth remained between them and their objective, including… _Is that a destroyer?!_

"Shepard!" Tali called out. "They've got a destroyer!"

"That sounds bad," Shepard said dryly, popping a geth that poked its head around a pillar. The destroyer let out a mechanical warble, blasting apart a chunk of the concrete Shepard was hiding behind.

"It is!" Tali tried her hack on it, but it corrected any changes she made in a fraction of a second. Frustrated, she settled for making a sniper go postal.

"Hang on, I've got an idea!" Shepard shouted. He disappeared down the stairs for a second before showing back up with one of the dead geth's rocket launchers. He set it down for now and continued using his trusty assault rifle. "When we've got it alone, Tali, Kaidan, hit it with overloads. I'll fire some rockets at it. If it's still not dead, we'll have to get in close to stand a chance."

They spent the next five minutes clearing out the geth while avoiding the destroyer as best as they could. Wrex took a direct hit from the monster while using his shotgun to baseball bat a trooper into oblivion. Thankfully, it only seemed to make him fight harder.

Finally, only the destroyer remained. Kaidan and Tali alternated overloads, keeping it stunned for a couple of seconds, while everyone kept up a constant barrage of fire. Its armor turned black from the amount of rocket hits, and little metal scraps started to flake off. One last rocket blew off a leg, dropping it to the floor. Wrex and Tali ran up close and blasted it with their shotguns a few times for good measure. After the destroyer's demise, the dropship realized its position had been compromised and took off, abandoning the attack. Kaidan massaged his temples while Wrex smacked himself on the chest, letting out a satisfied grunt.

"Good work. Time to find out what's going on." Shepard tossed the rocket launcher onto the ground and led the way back to the colonists. The path was littered with debris from the battle. Small craters and bullet holes decorated the walls, along with a nice layer of soot. By Tali's count, they must have killed over thirty geth just now. _Serves those murdering bosh'tets right._

Fai Dan and Arcelia had their weapons trained on the tower when they emerged. Upon seeing them, Fai Dan let out a sigh of relief and slowly stood up. Shepard met him with a guarded expression.

"Okay, we've secured the tower. Now would you please explain why an entire army of geth is attacking you?"

Fai Dan shrugged. "We don't know."

Shepard, Tali, and Kaidan all crossed their arms at the same time, skepticism etched into the humans' faces. Wrex nonchalantly leaned against a building, clearly not interested in the reasons for the assault. Shepard raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? You have no idea?"

Arcelia barged in. "If you want answers, go ask them yourselves."

Fai Dan gave her a look, and she begrudgingly stepped back. "I know it's not what you're looking for, but it's the truth. Most of us here work for ExoGeni; they're the corporation that funds this colony. The geth have set up a stronghold at the ExoGeni headquarters." He pointed back at the tower. "There's a skyway through there that will take you right to it. I'm guessing that the geth are after whatever ExoGeni is working on, but that information is above all our paygrades." His face sagged a little. "I'm just trying to get these people out of here alive. If I knew anymore, I would tell you. I promise."

Shepard considered him for a moment before nodding. "I believe you. We'll get this mess straightened out." He looked around at the ramshackle state of the colony. "Do you guys need any help besides the geth infestation? I can have some of my crew station themselves here until we get back."

Fai Dan's eyes lit up. "If you could, we would be very grateful. We have a lot of problems with basic necessities."

Shepard touched his earpiece. "Ashley? Suit up and bring Garrus and Liara. I need you guys to help these colonists. I'll ping you the location." He typed something into his omnitool before turning back to Fai Dan. "How far away is the headquarters?"

"It's a couple of miles, but we have a spare Mako you can use." Tali groaned at Shepard's big smile.

As they re-entered the tower, Shepard looked at Kaidan and Wrex. "So, who gets to be my gunner?"

"Well, I did win our biotic competition," Kaidan said smugly.

Wrex snorted. "I probably couldn't fit in it anyway. He'll be perfect, all small and stringy." Wrex grinned as Kaidan's smirk vanished.

"So its settled. I'm the gunner." Everyone stared at Tali for a second. "I'm kidding." Shepard laughed while the other two shook their heads. Tali could listen to Shepard laugh all day. His normally grim façade and serious voice changed completely. He looked…happy. She wished she could make him look like that every day.

After a long elevator ride, they emerged to find a couple of colonists fending off some assault drones. No one bothered to find cover as each of them picked a target and eliminated it in a couple of seconds. _I'm getting pretty good at this._ The guards didn't say anything to them as they walked by, yet another example of weird behavior. _What is wrong with these people?_

They climbed in the nearby Mako, and the door leading to the skyway opened up. Wrex leaned forward from the back and stuck his head between Shepard and Tali. "Are we gonna talk about the people here or not?"

Shepard kept his eyes on the road. "There isn't anything we can do about it right now. After we deal with the geth, we'll see. Maybe ExoGeni will have some answers." The building that had become a geth stronghold gradually grew bigger as they drove on. Tali had a nagging suspicion that the easy part of the mission was over.

They drove around a bend in the road and met a geth checkpoint waiting for them. Two armatures were planted in the middle, and half a dozen geth units started scrambling as they came into view. "Hold on!" Shepard called out, immediately starting to swerve all over the path. A couple of times they came within inches of falling off the edge, barely avoiding energy blasts from the geth.

"If I go down because you drove us off a damn road, I'll kill you before we hit the bottom."

"Noted, Wrex." Kaidan was doing his best, but Shepard's driving made direct hits almost impossible. Tali got a newfound appreciation for Garrus' skill in the gunner's seat. Kaidan eventually managed to bring one of the armatures down, and the decrease in projectiles made the rest of the enemies easy to clean up.

"See? No problem." Wrex just grunted. As they proceeded down the path, the radio came to life with an incoming transmission. The geth jamming devices created a decent amount of static, but a voice managed to get through enough for a few broken sentences.

"…last batch went south. What…looking for?"

"Tali, can you clean up that signal?" A couple seconds of tapping later, the static died down, allowing the voice to be heard again.

"…sign of movement? Lizbeth could still be in there. It's only been a few days."

"I can't pinpoint it Shepard, but it seems to be coming from up ahead somewhere. Definitely not the colony."

"We'll keep an ear out. For now, let's keep going to the base." They entered a tunnel a few hundred feet away from the ExoGeni building. The radio started again, no sign of the earlier static.

"We've got movement. Some kind of vehicle. Not one of the geth."

"They must be close enough to see us," Shepard said, looking around for any sign of movement. He pulled over next to a ramp that led down into the side of the tunnel.

"Forget them! We need to get to the geth," Wrex grumbled. Shepard didn't bother to reply, hopping out of the Mako and leading the way down the ramp.

They came into a large room with about thirty people inside. A man with a shaved head immediately approached them, anger and fear etched into his face. "That's close enough!"

"Relax, Jeong. They're obviously not geth." The woman who spoke walked up beside Jeong. She was holding a radio receiver; Tali assumed she must be the source of the voice from earlier.

"Get back, Juliana." Jeong brandished a pistol at Shepard, looking more pathetic than threatening. "Who are you?! What do you want?"

Shepard raised his hands placatingly. "Relax, we're here to help. We were sent to investigate the geth presence. We were on our way to their base when we heard your transmissions. Figured we should investigate, see if you needed any help."

Juliana pushed Jeong's arm down. "Don't worry about him. I'm just glad to see a friendly face. I thought we were the only ones left on this planet."

Kaidan looked confused. "Actually, Fai Dan and some other colonists are holed up at Zhu's Hope, about a mile from here."

Juliana glared daggers at Jeong. "I thought you said they were all dead!"

"I said they were 'probably' all dead." Juliana shook her head in disgust.

"If you don't need anything, we'll go ahead and be on our way." Shepard turned to leave.

"Wait." Juliana clasped her hands nervously. "If you're going to ExoGeni headquarters…can you look for my daughter, Lizbeth? She's missing."

"They shouldn't waste time poking around. Especially since its private property. We can take a proper accounting of casualties after this mess is over." Jeong's callousness shocked Tali. She could see Shepard bite back some choice words before turning to Juliana.

"We'll do everything we can, ma'am." She nodded gratefully. He gave Jeong a cold stare before walking out with his team.

"What a dick," Shepard said, climbing back into the driver's seat.

Wrex crossed his arms. "We should just kill him. He'll be trouble later, mark my words."

"If I killed everyone who annoyed me or might be trouble, we'd have to find a new Council." Kaidan chuckled at that. "Time to kick the geth out of here once and for all." Shepard looked at his team, grinning. "What could possibly go wrong?"


	6. Chapter 6: Ripping out the Roots

**Here's part two of Feros. I had such a hard time writing this mission for some reason, but I hope you like the end result!**

* * *

Shepard's back smashed into the wall, his breath leaving him as the krogan drove his shoulder into Shepard's stomach. Tali and Kaidan were busy keeping the destroyer distracted while Wrex bowled his way through various geth, shrugging off bullet wounds like they were fly bites. Shepard's guns were lying useless on the ground several feet away. He was on his own. Against a krogan. In melee.

His armor kept any serious damage from occurring on the initial strike, but he knew it was a matter of seconds before his adversary finished the job. Shepard made a beak with one of his hands and drove it deep into the krogan's eye. He used his other hand to keep the krogan from jerking back, squeezing farther and farther until jelly started to ooze down his arm. Finally, the beast let out an unearthly scream and dropped Shepard to the floor. Shepard drew his combat knife from his boot and buried it in the krogan's groin. The surprisingly high-pitched squeals almost made him feel sorry for his opponent, but he shook the thought away. _There is no honor in war._

Shepard felt a fist the size of his head crash down onto his shoulder, dislocating it. Cursing, he leapt away, leaving his knife in the krogan and his arm hanging uselessly by his side. _I can't take another hit like that. I need to end this._

Roaring, the giant swung his fist with all his might in a wild haymaker. Shepard ducked the blow, pulling his knife out in the same motion. Before the krogan could react, Shepard slid his weapon underneath the armpit, touching the heart. Knowing this might not end the fight, he kicked out the krogan's knee before savaging his face with the blade. Adrenaline and fury coursing through him, he swung again and again until nothing but a bloody pulp remained. Feeling someone touch his arm, he whirled around and almost stabbed Tali before he realized who it was. Blinking a couple of times, he looked around and noticed that the room was empty except for his squad and motionless forms.

"Shepard. I think he's dead," Tali said gently. The corpse, still kneeling upright, slowly toppled over backwards. He didn't hear her; he was too busy seeing how close his knife was to Tali's side. _I almost killed her._ Shuddering, he let the knife fall to the floor.

Tali was noticeably favoring one leg, Kaidan's nose was bleeding profusely and a bullet had passed through his left hand, and Wrex was sporting too many injuries to count, though they were healing remarkably fast. Kaidan wiped his face before standing by Shepard, taking a hold of his limp arm. "Ready? 1…2-"

With a sharp snap, Shepard's shoulder went back in its socket. "Why doesn't anyone ever do that on 3?" Shepard panted, massaging his arm. "Is everyone okay?"

"We're good, Commander," Kaidan assured him. Tali was already typing away on a console, and Wrex seemed to be searching the bodies for anything useful. Shepard went over to Tali, guilt filling his mind.

"Tali…I'm sorry."

"For what?" She turned her head to the side a little, something Shepard had learned meant she was confused.

"I almost…when you stopped me-"

"Shepard, please," Tali interrupted him. "I wasn't going to let you stab me. A recruit could have stopped that blind swing. I'm just glad I didn't have to dislocate your other arm," she said, giving him a friendly nudge. She immediately stiffened and went back to work, avoiding his eyes. Shepard was too relieved to notice, thankful that at least one of them could forgive him. He was the Commander. He shouldn't have lost himself in the battle; more is expected of him.

While Shepard was internally chastising himself, Tali tried to focus on the data in front of her. _I can't believe he beat that krogan, even with a knife._ She found some interesting information about geth activity and downloaded it into her omnitool to view later. Right now, she needed to send that damn ship and all of its geth off into the abyss. _More logs, unit numbers, reports on the colony…aha!_

"I think I can dislodge the ship Shepard."

"Really?" He looked over her shoulder. "How?"

She grinned at him, even though she knew he couldn't see it, and pressed a button. A hatch clamped shut and severed one of the anchors. Soon, the whole structure slowly sagged until the last claws ripped out, and it sank out of sight. Shepard let out a whoop and grabbed Tali with his good arm. "Now THAT'S how you do it!" Flustered, Tali just stood with her arms at her sides until he let go.

"Commander." Kaidan's voice sounded grave. "You need to hear this." Shepard went to him, and they listened to something coming through Kaidan's omnitool.

While they were talking, Wrex came over to Tali and held out a gun. "Here."

Tali took the weapon and read the label. She gasped. "A Katana shotgun? These are supposed to be amazing!" She caressed it, admiring its sleek design underneath the smatters of gore still present in areas. "Thank you, Wrex." She noticed Wrex' own shotgun was decidedly battered from years of use. "But…you found it. You should have it."

Wrex shrugged. "You killed that poor excuse of a krogan with a far inferior weapon. I think you've earned it." He gave a toothy smile. "Besides, I don't need a gun to be dangerous."

"Neither do I. But I'm not complaining."

Shepard and Kaidan joined them. The Commander's intense expression worried Tali. They had just defeated the invaders; what could be wrong now?

"We need to get back to the colony ASAP. Ashley says they've all lost their minds."

* * *

While searching through the ExoGeni headquarters, they discovered some interesting information about the colony. The company was using the people of Zhu's Hope as a science experiment to determine the effects of something called the Thorian, which was probably the reason the colonists were currently going insane. Shepard had ordered Ashley to retreat to the Normandy; he didn't want to mow down these people if they could avoid it. Somehow, between Liara's biotics and Garrus' combustion rounds, they made it back to the ship without serious injuries on either side.

Shepard had a stern conversation with Lizbeth when they arrived back at the Mako. They had found her early on in their search through the building, and her security access had allowed them to view everything ExoGeni was doing to Zhu's Hope. She claimed to have publicly fought against the program; Tali didn't know if she believed her, but Shepard seemed to, and that was good enough for her. As they started back toward the colony, an ominous sounding transmission came through the radio.

"…hear this? Repeat, is there anyone who can hear this?"

"Get away from that radio!"

Tali exchanged a look with Shepard. "What the hell was that?" Lizbeth asked, nervously peering around Wrex. Her and the krogan were situated quite uncomfortably in a seat designed for one. Before Shepard could respond, the radio stuttered to life again.

"…this is Juliana Baynham of Feros colony. Please help us…"

"That's my mom!" Lizbeth exclaimed. "We have to get to her!"

"We're approaching her location now," Shepard reassured her. Before the Mako had completely stopped, Lizbeth flung open the door and pushed her way past Wrex to the outside. She sprinted down the ramp leading to the temporary shelter, Shepard's team following more cautiously. Lizbeth saw her mother being escorted to a holding cell by guards and immediately ran to them, shouting "Get away from her, you son of a bitch!"

Juliana pulled her arm free and embraced her daughter. Jeong started pointing his gun wildly between the Baynhams and Shepard's team. "You! What are you doing here? Of course the geth didn't kill you, that would have been too easy." He barked out a short laugh, tinged with hysteria. "I looked you up on our database. I guess if a bunch of thresher maws can't kill you, I shouldn't have expected some robots to finish the job."

Shepard's face became stone. Jeong seemed to be waiting for him to say something, but he remained silent. Then he started walking directly towards Jeong.

"Don't come any closer!" Jeong's full attention was on Shepard now. "I mean it! One more step and I'll shoot!" Shepard didn't break his stride. Jeong pulled the trigger once, twice, three times, but the first one missed and the other two were absorbed by Shepard's shield. Before he could continue, Shepard had closed the distance and disarmed him in less than a second, snapping a finger in the process. Shepard pistol whipped him, breaking his nose and making him drop to one knee. The guards in the facility all trained their weapons on the Commander, but he didn't seem to notice. He crouched next to Jeong, his icy expression unbroken throughout the exchange.

"Look at me." When Jeong took too long, Shepard gave him a sharp backhand. "Look. At. Me." This time, Jeong immediately brought his eyes up to meet Shepard's. "If you had dug a little deeper, you would have found out that I am a Spectre. That means if, say, you threatened me or my companions, it would be perfectly legal for me to blow your brains out right now." Jeong's eyes widened with terror, and he started shaking uncontrollably. "However," Shepard continued, "I realize you didn't mean to upset me. You're scared, you weren't thinking clearly. I'm a reasonable man. Now, explain why you were having one of your employees thrown in jail. Please."

Jeong quickly complied, eager to appease this crazy person holding his life in his hands. "ExoGeni ordered us to purge the colony. I was going to follow orders, but she refused."

"So ExoGeni was going to kill all these people they brought here for their little science experiment just to cover up their mistake?"

"…Yes. Please, I was just following orders. If I didn't, someone else would have."

Shepard remained quiet, weighing his options. Tali had never seen him go dark like this before… _what did Jeong say? Thresher maws?_ Whatever wound the man had opened, Tali was not going to prod Shepard about it. That didn't stop her from wondering what could have caused him so much pain. She wanted to help him…but she knew now was certainly not the time.

"Here's what's gonna happen," Shepard said. "You, meaning ExoGeni, are going to help these people get back on their feet. You are going to provide whatever they need to become self-sustaining. And you are going to do it for free. If you don't, I will let everyone know exactly what happened here. I have proof, taken from your very headquarters. Imagine the PR nightmare." Shepard stood, pulling Jeong up with him. "Are we clear?"

"I'll have to get approval from my bosses but…yes." Jeong's nose was starting to swell, and the skin under his eyes was slowly turning dark purple. Shepard nodded. The guards all lowered their weapons, looking relieved they didn't have to use them.

"Good. Now, we need to find out why this thing controlling the colonists is so important. Any ideas on how to get past the people without killing them?"

Juliana spoke up. "We have a modified insecticide that acts as a sort of nerve agent. It should knock them out but leave them alive."

Wrex snorted. "That's convenient."

"Alright, we'll grab as much as we can carry and head out. I have some questions for this 'Thorian.'"

* * *

Despite their battle worn state, the squad would have had little trouble neutralizing the colonists. It was the zombies that gave them pause. As they entered the hangar where they had found the Mako, a strange sight greeted them. About twenty or so humanoid forms were scattered about the room. All of them were crouched, hugging their knees to their chests. Kaidan frowned and slowly approached the closest one. "Commander, these look like-"

As soon as he started speaking, the creatures sprang up and started sprinting directly at him. An unearthly wail emerged from jaws opened too wide for any human. Their green flesh appeared to be almost liquid; as they ran, little globs of goo fell off from their flailing arms. Kaidan jumped back and almost dropped his submachine gun, clearly unnerved by the sight. Though they didn't possess any shields or barriers, the monsters took far longer to drop from bullets than any normal living thing, except maybe krogan. Shepard and Wrex stood in the frontline, intercepting any that made it to their position while Tali and Kaidan focused on keeping the rest off of them. The last one fell as Wrex tore its arms off before sending it flying onto its back with a kick. When it still struggled to get up, he finished it with a blast to the head.

Wrex and Shepard could now add green slime to the list of viscera found on their armor. Kaidan had lost all color in his face, and he avoided looking at the bodies for too long.

"Are you okay, Kaidan?" Tali asked.

"I'm fine. I just…I don't like these things. They're creepy." He cleared his throat. "Shepard, they look very similar to the husks we saw on Eden Prime."

"You're right," Shepard agreed. "I'm not sure there's any connection, but it's something to think about, especially since the geth were here."

"There's probably going to be a lot more of these pyjaks between us and the Thorian," Wrex said, nudging a corpse with his toe. Part of an arm stuck to his foot, and he quickly shook it off with a growl. Kaidan looked like he was about to puke.

"Kill anything that's green, but avoid shooting the colonists. I don't want any collateral damage. Wrex, Kaidan, focus on disabling the humans with your biotics. Freeze them, pull them, bounce them around, whatever it takes. Tali and I will handle the gas grenades. Stay close, we don't want anyone getting swarmed by themselves."

They filed into the elevator. Tali steeled herself on the slow ride down. She knew she most likely wouldn't get another chance to breathe until the Thorian was dealt with. Kaidan was subtly edging away from Wrex, or rather, from the gore covering Wrex. The krogan noticed and, grinning, gave Kaidan a bone-crushing hug.

"There. Now you don't have anything to worry about."

Kaidan stared at the wall with a blank look. "Thanks," he said tonelessly.

"Don't mention it."

The doors opened, and a creeper greeted them with a shriek. Tali shredded its head with her shotgun and ran out, letting the others get clear of the doorway. A bullet hit her shields, and she ducked behind some rubble. Farther up, a line of colonists was firing at them as about a dozen zombies started running their way. "I've got this one," she called to Shepard, lobbing a grenade over the enemies' cover. A puff of smoke enveloped the citizens, and they collapsed to the ground after a couple of seconds. Meanwhile, Wrex and Kaidan were taking turns flinging creepers over the railing while Shepard mowed down any that got too close. This proceeded to be the routine going forward. Tali and Shepard would take out any colonists and keep the creepers off as Wrex and Kaidan pushed them off the edge of the world. They took the occasional hit from a gun, and a creeper got through once and hit Tali on her bad leg. Fire shot up through her spine to the back of her skull, but she fought through it and blasted it away.

"Are you alright?" Shepard asked, taking position in front of her and shooting a combustion round.

"Yes," Tali said through gritted teeth. He didn't look convinced, but they had a battle to deal with.

Finally, the town center was silent. Kaidan held his head with a pained expression. "I don't think I can keep up my biotics for much longer, Shepard."

"I have a feeling we're nearly done." Shepard looked around the settlement. "Look around and see if you can find a way underground. If you need to, Kaidan, just use your tech and your gun."

Tali found a console and started looking for information on the Thorian. "No giant lasers this time, right Tali?" Shepard said with a smirk.

"Let me see…a self-destruct sequence? That sounds like fun." Shepard laughed and started looking around in the buildings. Tali savored the sound for a moment before focusing back on the screen. _Wait…this prefab was moved by a crane only a couple hours ago. I wonder…_

The unit in question slowly raised into the air, revealing a hidden set of stairs leading underneath the colony. Just as Tali started congratulating herself, she saw Shepard poke his head out from the side of the building she just lifted. "This is becoming a bad habit, Tali."

She blushed. "I'm sorry! I didn't know you were in there!"

Shepard hopped onto the roof of a nearby structure, then scrambled down the side, dropping to the ground. "Well, you did find what we were looking for. I suppose I can let it slide."

His smile froze, and he whipped around, drawing his rifle on the man stumbling towards them. The newcomer, whom Tali recognized as Fai Dan, was twitching violently, as if he didn't have full control over his movements. "It hurts…you have no idea how much it hurts…to not listen to it. It…keeps digging…and digging…I can't-"

Whatever he was going to say was cut off as Wrex appeared behind him and clubbed him over the head. Fai Dan slumped to the floor, instantly unconscious. Shepard gave Wrex a look. "What?"

They followed the new path for a surprisingly short amount of time before it opened up into a large cave. Occupying most of the space was a giant, fleshy looking…plant? Tendrils laced out from the central blob, connecting it to the walls and suspending it over a chasm. The thing's skin appeared to be made out of the same material as the creepers. The team stopped in their tracks, staring in mixed awe and horror at the monstrosity in front of them.

"I'm guessing that's the Thorian," Kaidan pointed out unnecessarily.

"Keelah…what…what should we shoot?"

The Thorian convulsed, and a green asari slithered out of its maw, dripping in saliva. Shepard made a face. "I did NOT need to see that."

The asari stood and stared at Shepard. "Invaders! You do not belong here! Lesser beings are not worthy of anything other than digging or decomposing. I speak for the Thorian, as I did for Saren. It demands that you be in awe!"

Shepard perked up at the name of his quarry. "You know Saren? What did he want with you?"

"Saren wanted information about the Old Growth. We made a bargain. He betrayed us. We will not suffer mortals any longer!" The asari crouched and sprang at Shepard. He flipped her over and crushed her windpipe with his boot.

"Bring that thing down! Throw everything you have at it, any grenades, nerve gas and regular." They opened fire, using the time while their weapons cooled down to toss explosives at the Thorian. Creepers and more green asari poured in from the sides, splitting their attention. The Thorian wailed as the assault progressed. Wrex and Kaidan periodically unleashed waves of biotic energy, flinging back the encroaching enemies enough to give the team room to shoot. Kaidan looked like he was about to collapse from the strain of sustaining his biotics, and all of them took a couple of hits during the battle. They just needed to keep this up for a bit longer…

One of the asari clones glowed blue and blasted Shepard directly into the Thorian. "Shepard!" Tali cried out, blowing the offending asari away. Shepard took a moment to get his bearings before unloading point blank into the top of the Thorian's head. The creepers and asari fell to the ground, and the huge stems holding the monstrosity in place began to snap. Shepard popped one final grenade and stuck it in the Thorian before making a running leap for safety. As he started to fall, Tali saw that he wasn't going to make it. She dove for the edge and grabbed his outstretched hand just in time. The force of his body on her arm almost wrenched it out of place, and she felt herself slipping over into the chasm as well. Then, something grabbed her feet and pulled both her and Shepard back from the abyss.

Wrex let go of her and helped them both up. "Nice catch Tali."

"You too Wrex," she said breathlessly. Her elbow throbbed from taking all of Shepard's weight, but nothing appeared to be broken. As she looked at Shepard, she couldn't help but smile. The Thorian was dead, and she had stopped the Commander from meeting the same fate. "I hope that makes up for the whole crane thing earlier."

Shepard wheezed a couple of times. "I think so." He put a hand on her shoulder. "Thanks. I would have been a goner if not for you."

"I was afraid we'd lost you." Tali felt the familiar butterflies start kicking in her stomach and tried to say something snarky. "I mean, what would I do if you'd fallen? I haven't finished studying your drive core."

Shepard gave her a half-smile. "We can't have that, now can we?" He examined Wrex and Kaidan, making sure they were alright. "Everyone good?" They all nodded, eager to leave this hellhole. Shepard slowly started to make his way back up the stairs, gesturing for them to follow. "Come on. Let's get back to the Normandy."


	7. Chapter 7: The First Sparks

**Hey guys! This chapter will finally wrap up everything with Feros, thank goodness. Most of this section will focus on a break in the Citadel before any more missions take place. I would like to thank Blaze1992 for his consistent reviews with nearly every chapter so far; I really appreciate the input! Hope you guys enjoy!**

* * *

Tali was checking on one of the colonists they had knocked out earlier when the asari emerged from the passage to the Thorian and stumbled to the ground. Considering her normal-colored skin and fatigued state, Tali figured she wasn't a threat and ran over to help her.

"Shepard! Someone just came out of the cave!" She offered the stranger a hand up. "Are you okay? Where did you come from?"

Shepard jogged over to them, a puzzled look on his face. "Are you alright, ma'am? Um…who are you?"

The asari waved them off. "I'll be fine. Are you the ones who saved me?"

"Well, we killed the Thorian. Is that what you mean?" Recognition dawned on him as he squinted at her. "Hang on, you look like those green asari. Only, you know, blue."

She sighed. "My name is Shiala. That…thing was using me to create clones. I was part of a trade between it and Saren."

"Saren?" Shepard shared a glance with Tali. "Are you involved with him?"

"It's complicated." Shiala noticed their suspicion and spread her hands to the side. "I'm not anymore, I can promise you that. I only ever followed him because of Matriarch Benezia."

"You know Benezia? What happened?"

"Benezia saw the potential influence Saren could have and tried to steer him toward a better path. Instead, she ended up following him. I followed Benezia, so when she told us she believed in Saren, we instantly trusted her."

Shepard put a hand on his forehead. "How the hell did Saren convince a matriarch to help him? Aren't they supposed to be the wisest people in the galaxy?"

Shiala dropped her gaze, unable to meet their eyes as shame welled up. "Benezia was a wonderful mentor. I was proud to serve under her. But Saren…he has this giant warship called Sovereign. It messes with your head, makes you listen to it." She touched her temple with a grimace. "It can take weeks or months, but in the end, its control is absolute. Even Benezia wasn't strong enough to withstand its influence."

Shepard chewed his lip, letting this new information sink in. "Well shit."

"Saren gave me to the Thorian in return for knowledge about the Conduit. Then, he ordered the geth to destroy it so you couldn't get the Cipher. He knows you're following him."

"The Cipher?"

"The beacon you found on Eden Prime was meant for a Prothean mind. To understand it, you need to understand everything about the Protheans. Their culture, their history, their very existence. The Thorian was here while the Protheans lived. It absorbed them when they died."

"So the Thorian taught Saren how to think like a Prothean?" Shepard shook his head. "How does that even work?"

"It didn't teach him. It…showed him, through me. I can pass it on to you as well. I want to see Saren go down, and it's the least I owe you for saving my life."

"How?" Shepard looked like he dreaded the answer.

"I would meld our minds together."

"Fantastic." He let out a breath. "Let's get this over with."

"Try to relax. Slow, deep breaths. Let go of your physical shell. Open yourself to the universe…" Shiala leaned her head back and closed her eyes for a second. Suddenly, she snapped down, staring at Shepard with dark pools that seemed to swallow nearby light. "Embrace eternity!"

Shepard immediately stiffened, his face writhing with different emotions. After a couple of seconds passed, Tali began to worry. A large, purple vein appeared on Shepard's forehead, and his eyelids were fluttering out of control. _He can't take this anymore._ Just when she moved to break the trance, Shepard stopped convulsing and slowly opened his eyes.

"Shepard, what happened?" Tali touched his shoulder, trying to catch his wandering gaze. "Are you alright?"

Shepard blinked several times in a row. "Fuck…me…"

Shiala appeared drained as well, but she didn't share Shepard's dazed expression. "I just gave you the Cipher. It will take time for the transfer to complete; you received the knowledge of an entire race, after all."

"Yeah…everything's still unclear, but it feels…different, somehow."

Tali tugged at his arm. "Come on Shepard, we need to get Dr. Chakwas to check you out, just in case."

Shiala looked around at the unconscious colonists. "I'd like to stay here and help out, if that's alright. I played a part in their suffering, and I want to make amends."

Shepard nodded distractedly. "Sure, sounds good." He turned to Tali. "Let's get off this rock, please."

Kaidan and Wrex appeared alongside them as they made their way to the Normandy. "Nice to see you two," Shepard scoffed.

"What happened Commander?" Kaidan cast a suspicious glance around the camp, searching for hostiles.

"I found what Saren came here for. I just don't know if it'll help yet."

* * *

After running a couple of odd jobs for the Alliance, Shepard took them back to the Citadel to resupply and rest before following up on their last lead in Noveria. Ashley and Kaidan went with some of the crew to eat, get drunk, and undoubtedly cause some property damage. Wrex set out on a quest to stock the Normandy with as much ryncol as he could afford. Garrus was going to catch up with some friends of his from C-Sec. Liara went to gather data on the Protheans from the Council archives. Which left Tali. Who had no idea what she was going to do.

She stood in the docking bay watching the others head off into the Citadel. There really wasn't anywhere she wanted to visit; everything was either too pricey or didn't trust quarians. Tali decided staying on the ship sounded like a good idea. Just as she started walking back, Shepard came out of the airlock and immediately approached her.

"Hey Tali! Did you forget something?"

"No, I just…don't have anything I need to do."

Shepard raised an eyebrow. "Well, is there anything you _want_ to do?"

"I'm good Shepard, really." She smiled through her mask and tried to step around him, but he blocked her way.

"Oh no, I'm not letting one of my ground team use her leave time to, you know, not leave?" He grinned and gently turned her around, steering her toward the exit. "Come on, you can hang out with me."

Her shoulder felt warm from his touch. _That sounds amazing._ "I couldn't ruin your visit like that, Shepard." _But I want to._

"Nonsense. I've got a few errands I need to run, but after that we can go get something to eat that doesn't taste like armpit." He paused, giving her a concerned look. "Are there places on the Citadel that can serve quarians? And I don't mean more of the same paste."

"Yes, there are a few restaurants that have dishes for quarians. We have the same diet as turians, so the type of food isn't a problem. However, it's expensive to have it prepared with proper sterilization. Really expensive." She shuffled her feet. "I'd rather spend my credits on other things than food. I have more than enough tubes to last me a long time."

"Okay, then I'll pay for it."

"What? No!"

"Don't worry about it. Between the Council and the Alliance, I've got more credits then I've ever had in my life, and it's only been a couple of weeks since I became a Spectre. Money isn't going to be a problem."

"I'm not going to let you-"

"I don't want to hear it. You've done good work, and you deserve a break."

"But-"

"Ah ah," Shepard cut her off, giving her a warning point with his finger. She shook her head and sighed, but she didn't say anything else. His grin widened. "Good! Now, I just need to stop by a few places."

They made their way through the docks to one of the more commercial districts in the wards. Flocks of people crowded the streets, and the dull roar of thousands of voices melding together pervaded the area. Tali preferred this kind of atmosphere to the Presidium Commons; here, she could pass unnoticed, and the constant noise reminded her of home.

They entered a small munitions store a little ways off from the main road. A couple of turians stood behind the counter looking bored, and a batarian was in the back of the shop fiddling with a pistol.

"This will only take a minute," Shepard said before going over to talk to one of the employees. Tali wandered through the store aimlessly until she found a section on omnitools. Curious, she compared some of the specs with her current model. _It's still a little old, but it's certainly better than mine._ She looked at the price. _That's not bad at all._ Satisfied, she picked it up and proceeded to the counter. One of the workers had disappeared along with Shepard, leaving the other to stare blankly at the wall.

"I'd like to buy this, please." The turian's eyes focused on her, and his face plates shifted into a frown.

"Quarians aren't welcome in here. Didn't you read the sign?"

Tali was taken aback. "What sign?"

The red markings on his face enhanced his angry expression as he pointed at the door. "That sign." They both looked at the clear glass where he was pointing, which was devoid of any sign of a sign. He grumbled a couple of curses. "Lentus never does his job. Look, I realize there has been a misunderstanding, but I have to ask you to leave now."

"Seriously?" Tali's voice raised in indignation. "I haven't done anything, and you're just going to kick me out?"

He snorted. "I'll bet you haven't. Why don't you empty your pockets?"

"Oh right. I'm a quarian. I must be shoplifting."

"If you aren't, then you have nothing to hide."

"Fine!" She started ripping things out of her pouches and slamming them on the counter. "If only to prove that your rule is ridiculous and racist, and that-"

"What do we have here?" The turian picked up one of her tech mines. "It's the exact same kind of mine we have in stock. You going to tell me you just happened to be carrying the same type?"

Tali's jaw dropped. "It doesn't even have a price tag! I couldn't have stolen that from you!"

"You're right." He inspected the mine closely. "It doesn't have its tag." He surged forward, thrusting a finger in her face. "How did you get it off? That's supposed to be impossible!"

She slapped his arm away. "Exactly! Listen to yourself!"

"Excuse me." They both turned to look at the source of the deep baritone. The batarian cleared his throat. "I was standing by the explosives the whole time she was in here. The quarian never even went to that part of the store."

The turian scoffed. "And I'm supposed to just believe you? You might be working together for all I know."

Tali was ready to launch herself at the infuriating clerk when Shepard emerged from another room, salesman in tow. "What's going on here?"

"Nothing to worry about sir, just dealing with a thief."

"Oh really? A thief, huh?" Shepard put a hand over his heart. "Tali, how could you betray me like this?" he asked, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "And right after I made such a large purchase." He let out a dramatic sigh. "I guess I'll have to take my business elsewhere…"

"No!" The other turian piped up. "It's no problem at all! I'm sure it was just a misunderstanding, right Sevus?"

"This was not a misunderstanding! You forgot to put up the sign, and now a suit-rat just tried to steal from us!" Shepard rammed his fist into the turian's stomach, knocking the breath out of him and bending him over. No one else in the room moved as the clerk struggled to fill his lungs with air.

"What you just said sounded very offensive. I want you to apologize."

"…You can't just…attack me…" the turian wheezed out.

"Actually, I can. One of the perks of being a Spectre. Now apologize."

Fear took over Sevus' face, and he stammered out a lackluster "I'm sorry" before quickly retreating away from Shepard. The Commander turned to Tali. "Were you going to get something?"

"Actually yes. This omnitool."

Shepard picked it up and tossed it to Lentus. "We can keep our deal, but that gets thrown in for free." The turian nodded vigorously. _What in the world could Shepard have bought to make him this agreeable?_ Tali wondered.

The batarian started to return to the back of the store. Remembering how he tried to help, she quickly grabbed the pistol he was holding and gave it to Lentus. "This too." Shepard didn't say anything, and Lentus just shrugged and rung everything up. Sevus slunk away without meeting their eyes. After they received their purchases, Tali handed the gun to the batarian. "Thanks for saying something."

"What do you know, trying to help actually paid off." He nodded to them and walked away without another word.

"So, that happened. Assholes." Shepard sighed. "I hate using my status like that, but they deserved it. No one treats a member of my crew that way." He looked at her. "What did they call you again, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Suit-rat." Tali hated the sound the word made leaving her mouth. "It's a common phrase used to describe my people. It's really not a big deal."

"Bullshit. That annoys me, and I'm not even quarian." He shook his head. "I'm sorry you have to put up with that. At the very least, I'll make sure it doesn't happen while I'm around."

Tali felt a lump rise in her throat. She knew Shepard was just being his normal, nice self, but it felt good to have someone outside of the Fleet defend her people, even against something so small. "Thank you, Shepard," she said quietly.

"What are friends for?" He smiled. "You know, I can get the other stuff later. Let's go eat. Do you have a place picked out?"

 _Friends?_ Ignoring the warm feeling in her stomach, Tali brought up her display, reminding her of her new toy waiting in the bag. She reigned in her excitement and simply used the old model for now. "Dex-Lev Deluxe isn't too far from here, and it seems reasonable."

"Lead the way."

While they were walking, Tali set up the omnitool, making sure all of her data transferred successfully before storing the other in one of her pockets. She eagerly tested a couple of applications, noting how much faster things ran now. _This is going to make my life so much easier!_ She saw Shepard grinning at her and realized she had been silently absorbed in her screen for a couple of minutes now.

"Sorry…sometimes I get a bit carried away when I find new tech."

"No worries. Glad you like it." He pointed ahead of them. "However, I do think we're here."

It was a quaint little restaurant tucked away from the main thoroughfare. The salarian host greeted them warmly and showed them to a table near the back corner. The only lights available were a couple of dimmed overheads and the lit candles placed in front of them. Soft music played in the background, featuring a soulful violin. The atmosphere was decidedly romantic. Tali was mortified.

"I didn't know it would be like this. The reviews said it was good, and the menu had decent prices. They didn't say anything about the, um…candles."

"Uh-huh. Are you trying to make a move on me, Tali?"

"What?! N-no, I would never, th-that would be…" He started laughing, cueing Tali in that he wasn't being serious. The tension in her gut released, giving way to her own laughter.

"Our lunches already have the crew gossiping. Can you imagine if someone from the ship saw us now?"

"Keelah, don't even say that."

"Shepard. Tali." Tali recognized that deep rumble instantly. _Oh no._ She slowly turned around, meeting the giant krogan's gaze.

"Hey…Wrex," Shepard said, scratching his head awkwardly. "What are you doing here?"

"Saw you two through the window. Thought I'd say hi."

Tali tried to explain the situation. "This isn't…I mean, it's not, you know…" She didn't do a very good job. Wrex gave a knowing smirk, then abruptly stomped away. She put her head on the table.

"This is your fault, Shepard."

"My fault? What did I do?"

"You jinxed us! Like Garrus on Therum!"

"Oh…you may have a point." She rolled her eyes. "Hey! I saw that!"

"You were supposed to." He tried to reply, but a small laugh escaped instead. After he started, he couldn't stop, and soon he was doubled over holding his sides. Tali couldn't help but join him. Of all the places on the Citadel for Wrex to wander through, he had to come here and see them sitting alone in a place clearly designed to host couples. It was ridiculous. And hilarious.

The waiter chose that moment to approach them for their drink orders. He stood by while they continued to unceremoniously chuckle, snort, and wheeze. The more they tried to stop, the harder they laughed. Tali didn't even think it was funny anymore, but every time she almost regained her composure, she would look at Shepard and start laughing again. Finally, the waiter cleared his throat, his patience apparently having run out, and ignored the giggling coming from his customers.

"Good afternoon. What will you be having to drink today?"

"Just…just water for me." Shepard wiped away some tears with his napkin.

"For me as well. Filtered, of course." Tali felt the moisture from her eyes slowly dry onto her skin. She envied Shepard's ability to touch his face. At least she didn't have any itchy nose. _Oh, come on…_

While she attempted to scratch her nose by scrunching up her face and using her lip, Shepard leaned back in his chair and let out a deep breath, gazing out the window at the bustling city. "This was fun. Thanks for coming with me, Tali."

"First of all, I didn't really have a say in that, remember? And I'm the one getting a free meal and an omnitool out of this." She searched his face, noticing how much more relaxed he looked than normal. The ever-present lines that creased his brow were gone, and he had a small smile. "But I'm glad you made me come."

His smile widened, and her heart fluttered in her chest. _Well, I don't think there's any more denying it. I'm in love with a human._ She knew it was an impossible romance. Holding his hand might give her a lethal reaction, let alone anything more intimate. For the moment, though, she ignored the logical side of her brain and day dreamed about what could be. Watching sunsets, sharing meals like this, kissing under the stars…

Reality crashed back down suddenly. She had the Fleet to go back to, and he had his duty to the Alliance. They were different species who didn't even eat the same food. They could never be together; it was only a foolish girl's dream. She would stay with him as long as he needed her, and then she would leave for her people. It broke her heart to think about that, but it was the truth. Better to accept it now then to build up false hope.

Yet, deep in her soul, a part of her refused to acknowledge those arguments. It clung to the images she had conjured of their life together and made a home for them. She buried her thoughts as the drinks arrived, focusing back on her surroundings. _I can still enjoy his company, even if it's just as friends._

Little did she know that on the other side of the table, Shepard was starting to realize he might have a crush on one of his crewmates.


	8. Chapter 8: Crash Course

**Hey everyone! This mission is going to be split into two parts like the others, but unfortunately the second part is going to be pushed back until next week for posting. In any case, time to save Terra Nova! Thank you guys for all of the follows, favorites, reviews, and views. I am amazed at how many people have read the story, and I hope you keep liking it!**

* * *

The whole ground team was assembled in the cargo bay. Shepard paced in front of them while he decided who he would bring with him to the asteroid. If the fusion torches kept their current speed, the rock would hit Terra Nova in a little over four hours. They had to move quickly.

Shepard anticipated engagements between the Mako and the defense turrets, making Garrus an obvious choice. His skill in the gunner's seat was unmatched by anyone else on the Normandy, including Wrex. Tali's technical expertise would likely be required; Shepard had no idea what kind of security was on the torches, but bringing her should nullify any firewalls that the station's computers possessed. That, and he hadn't stopped thinking about her since the Citadel. _Now is not the time for that, Shepard._ Despite his possible bias, he knew that bringing Tali was the logical decision. Since his current selection lacked any semblance of biotics, Liara would get to demonstrate her combat abilities for the first time.

Satisfied with his team, Shepard stopped walking and addressed his crew. "Garrus, Tali, Liara, you're coming with me."

Ashley immediately protested. "Skipper, I don't think that-"

Shepard silenced her with a glare. "Are you questioning my orders, Williams?"

She snapped to attention. "Sir, no sir!"

"Good. I know you've been sitting on the sidelines since Eden Prime, but you have to trust my judgement as your Commander. You'll get your chance." Shepard's words mollified Ashley, and she remained quiet after that. His team armed themselves with the new gear Shepard had purchased at the munitions store; everyone except Tali found better versions of their weapons stocked in the Normandy's armory. Tali's Katana shotgun was superior to the Scimitars available, and she lovingly stored it on her back.

They climbed into the Mako as Joker began his approach on the asteroid. Tali sat in her customary seat next to Shepard. Liara looked like a deer in the headlights sitting in the back of the vehicle. She had only brought a pistol with her, apparently having never even fired anything larger. Shepard hoped she was as good with her biotics as she claimed to be.

The Commander launched the tank out of the cargo bay, exhilarated as always by the drop. Tali appeared to be handling it better than last time as her hands weren't trying to break the handle off of the door. Liara, on the other hand, expressed her terror in no uncertain terms as a small shriek escaped her lips. As they fell, Shepard could hear her chanting "Goddess, Goddess, Goddess…" from the back, making him grin. They landed without a hitch, and Shepard took a moment to drink in the view.

Above them, Terra Nova loomed huge on the horizon. The planet filled over half of the sky, indicating how close they were to disaster. Everything in sight was dusty and gray, and the landscape was broken by giant crags and shallow trenches. Shepard could see the flames spurting from the fusion torches and started heading towards the closest one.

"We're getting a signal, Commander," Tali said, transmitting the audio to their helmets.

"…can you hear me? Whoever you are, you have to shut down those torches. If…we'll all die. They haven't found me yet, I'll try to stay in touch."

"Sounds like someone got away. I hope they stay safe," Liara said with worry.

Shepard crested a rise and got eyes on the first torch. Five defense towers pivoted, pointed at them, and began bombarding the tank. Caught off guard, Shepard used the thrusters to skim over the top of the missiles, barely avoiding the salvo. Despite this, Garrus landed his first rocket before they touched the ground. _Damn he's a good shot._

Shepard had an easy time after that avoiding the targeting systems, driving in a lazy circle around the structure until Garrus finished them off. The turian, after once again not missing a single rocket, pantomimed blowing smoke off his fingers. "You're making it too easy for me Shepard."

Shepard chuckled. "Cocky bastard." They jumped out of the Mako and approached the door to the facility. Everyone readied their weapons as Shepard hovered his hand over the button. "Ready?" They nodded. Shepard opened it and burst into the room, sweeping left and right. He saw a couple of figures crouched over a body at the far end of the chamber, flanked by two dog-like creatures. When he saw their faces clearly, rage filled his mind.

"Batarians," he spat. These were clearly pirates, the same kind of people that had attacked his home. The pirates shout something, and the "dog-like" varren charged the group. Tali popped one of them, and Shepard pulled his shotgun off his back and blasted the other away just before it leapt on him. He dropped it to retake control of his favored assault rifle. Garrus had already exploded one of the batarians' heads into pieces, and azure pulses emanated from Liara as she prepared an attack. Another group of enemies rounded a set of crates and advanced on their position. Before they went a couple of feet, however, all five of them started being helplessly drawn towards a pulsating circle of dark energy crackling above their heads. It didn't take long to finish off the incapacitated pirates and their pets. After the last one died, the ball winked out of existence, and the bodies fell to the floor with a wet splat.

"Nice job, Liara. That was a neat trick." Shepard gave her a pat on the arm.

"Thank you, Commander."

"Okay Tali, see if you can find how to shut this thing down."

"Right away, Shepard." Shepard watched Tali's hips sway as she walked to a couple of consoles in the back of the room. He felt the heat rise in his cheeks and distracted himself by picking up the shotgun he had dropped earlier. _What are you, twelve? Get a grip and focus._ He joined her at the computers and, despite his self-admonishment, found himself fascinated at the way her fingers flew across the screen. His eyes wandered up to the side of her mask, and he tried to get a glimpse of what she looked like underneath. He thought he could make out the faint outline of a nose; other than that, all he could see was the glow from her eyes. He watched her luminous orbs dart back and forth behind the purple glass; the movement was almost hypnotic.

"Finished," she said abruptly, startling him out of his reverie. He saw Garrus giving him a strange look, and he cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Good. Great. Yes." Tali cocked her head, plainly confused by his stammering. He passed a hand over his face, trying to regain his composure. "Two more to go. Let's not waste any time."

Before they could leave, the voice from before crackled into life from the console. "I can see the torch is offline. Can you hear me?"

Shepard entered a respond command. "This is Commander Shepard. I read you."

"Thank God. I'm Kate Bowman. I'm an engineer on this asteroid. The batarians showed up and took over everything. I don't know why they're here, but they have a lot of us hostage."

"Are you safe?"

"For now, but I need to cut this short or they'll track it. I'll contact you later." The line went dead. Shepard motioned for them to move out, leading the way to the exit. Garrus was doing the turian equivalent of raising an eyebrow at Shepard, but he just shook his head. Garrus shrugged and decided not to press the issue.

A bullet flew at Shepard's stomach and fizzled out on his shields. He was a hairsbreadth away from pulling the trigger at his assailant before he realized it was another human. The man set down his pistol and put his hands up apologetically. "I'm so sorry, I didn't see that you were human. Are you hurt?"

Shepard lowered his rifle. "I'm fine, but watch your fire in the future. Who are you?"

"My name is Simon Atwell. I'm the director of this operation. I thought I would try to turn off the torches myself, but now I think it might be better if I stay out of sight."

"That would be a good idea. We'll handle it."

"One more thing," Simon called as they moved past him. "If this isn't stopped, the entire planet will be ruined. Over four million people will die…including my grandchildren. Please, for all our sakes, you must succeed."

Shepard put on a comforting smile. "Just stay put; we've got this." They left the researcher behind and got back in the Mako. The second location had a couple more defense turrets which were dispatched easily, but a ring of blasting caps kept them from driving the tank to the entrance. They filed through the door into a small antechamber cut off from the main room. Shepard peeked his head around the opening and saw around five batarians standing at various locations around the facility. They hadn't noticed his team entering the building.

Shepard pulled them back and whispered his plan. "I'm going to try and take out as many as I can before they see us. If you hear shouts or gunfire, rush in and help. Otherwise, stay put; I don't want to be given away."

He crouched and shuffled his way over behind a stack of crates. A pirate stood leaning on the other side of his cover. He flipped his knife around so the blade ran along the length of his arm and bided his time, listening as one of the batarians slowly walked away from their position. When he couldn't hear any footsteps, he sprang up and sank his knife into the pirate's neck, hooking his free arm around his throat and pulling him behind the boxes. Shepard kept his mouth covered as the life slowly faded from his eyes. When he stopped twitching, Shepard set the dead man's head on the ground and singled out his next target.

Darting from shadow to shadow, Shepard methodically continued through the room and disposed of the guards on his way. The last slaver, however, turned a corner and came upon Shepard right as he sliced open his friend's jugular. The batarian tried to get his gun up, but Shepard tackled him before he could shoot. They struggled to gain control of the pistol, kicking, elbowing, and punching each other as they wrestled. Shepard proved to be the stronger adversary, and they both focused all of their attention on the firearm as it slowly turned to point at the pirate. Gasping from the effort, the batarian began to panic and tried to plead with Shepard. "No, please, wai-"

The bullet went through his chin and blew off the top of his head, drenching the nearby shelf with gore. Shepard threw the limp arm with the gun aside, panting heavily. He hated killing people in melee like this; feeling someone's heart stop beating, knowing that you were the cause, would never sit well with him. Those cries for mercy still echoed in his ears as his team busted out of the entranceway and ran to him. After a couple of seconds of frantic looking, they realized that all of the guards were dead.

Garrus surveyed the bodies with an appraising eye. "Damn, Shepard. I'm impressed."

Shepard just grunted and turned to Tali. "You know what to do." Tali got to work while Shepard cleaned his knife on one of the pirate's clothes.

Liara looked at the scene with wide eyes. "We couldn't hear anything. You killed them all with that knife." She examined the gaping smile he had carved into one of the necks and shuddered. "That must have been horrible."

"You do what you have to. It's best not to dwell." Shepard sheathed his blade and approached Tali. "How's it going?"

"Almost…done." The dull roar from the torch faded into silence. Kate's voice whispered to them a few moments later.

"Nice job, now there's only one left. I think-" Kate suddenly cut off, and some muffled crashes could be heard coming from her end. When silence descended again, a clearly batarian voice rose through the radio.

"Who's turning off the torches?" Shepard clenched his fist and gritted his teeth as no response came from Kate. "I won't ask again," the batarian continued, dropping to a menacing whisper. When the quiet went unbroken once again, a gunshot came through the channel. "Find them!" After that, the radio quit transmitting.

"Damnit!" Shepard slammed his hand against the wall in frustration. "We have to hurry and stop these slavers."

"I don't understand; why are they doing this?" Liara asked as they marched out to the tank. "Don't pirates normally raid somewhere and take its resources? Why are they destroying a whole planet?"

"I don't know, Liara. It doesn't make sense." Shepard revved up the Mako and took off after the final torch. Terra Nova now swallowed up almost three-quarters of the sky; time was running out. When he was younger, scum like this had wiped out his entire colony. He wasn't about to let that happen again.

The defenses at the third location were essentially nonexistent, especially compared to the other two. Garrus quickly destroyed the lone tower, allowing Shepard to drive straight to the entrance without having to perform any crazy stunts. The building had an identical layout to the others they'd been in, and they zeroed in on the computers that would shut down the giant rocket hurtling them towards annihilation. Standing in front of them, however, was a large squad of pirates. Before Shepard could fire, the closest one held up his hand and called out "Wait! This doesn't have to end in bloodshed!"

Shepard pointedly looked at the bodies of the engineers strewn about on the floor. "I think it's a little late for that."

"I've been ordered to kill you, but I'm getting tired of listening Balak. This was supposed to be a simple slave grab, but it's gotten out of hand."

Shepard felt his jaw clench at the word slave and forced himself to relax. "I see. You don't want to commit genocide, right? Nothing so evil as that." A couple of the batarians nodded, thinking Shepard understood where they were coming from. "You just wanted to kidnap and murder hundreds of people is all." They stopped nodding. "I'm guessing this is the part where you want me to let you walk away?"

The leader narrowed his eyes. "We outnumber you four to one. I don't give a rat's ass if Terra Nova lives or dies, but I'm giving both of our people a chance to leave here in one piece."

Shepard tried to approach the speaker rationally, but all he could see was his family being slaughtered in front of him. His eyes burned with cold fire as he gave his one word reply. "Noted." Shepard whipped his rifle up and pierced three of the speaker's eyes in less than a second. He toppled over backward, and everyone scrambled to get behind cover as chaos erupted in the room. Liara kept the varren busy by flinging away any that got too close, and Tali engaged the batarian engineers in cyberwarfare. She easily fended off their attempts to overload her team's shields and stuck back by overheating their guns. The cries of pain and clatter of metal on metal brought a grin to her face.

Garrus focused in on a metal pipe. He knew a slaver was hiding behind it, and he steadied his aim while he waited for a sign of movement. The world around him faded as, in order to compensate for his weapon sway, he stopped his breathing. Nothing existed but the gray, metallic cylinder. _One…two…_ Yellow skin peaked into his scope, and his gun kicked sharply as he pulled the trigger. Brains splattered the wall, and he moved to find another victim.

Soon only half of the original group of pirates remained. They decided to group together and charge Shepard's squad, coming down a hallway between a line of shelves towards Tali and Liara's position. Shepard knew they wouldn't be able to kill all of them before they overwhelmed his team, and he didn't want to risk any of them in the pandemonium of a close quarters fight like that. Especially Tali. So he did the thing he was best at; he charged right back at them.

Their initial surprise at seeing him dashing towards them let him cover more than half the distance before they began firing. He overcharged his shields to absorb as much damage as possible and queued a medigel just in case. His shields collapsed right as he barreled into the first pirate, slamming him against the wall and leaving him stunned. Shepard spun the batarian around and used him as a meat shield while he sprayed bullets into the crowd. He felt the impact of the bullets hitting the slaver as the body jerked and twitched from friendly fire. His rifle ripped apart arms, chests, legs, and heads as he decimated their ranks. Three shots managed to find their mark in Shepard's shooting arm, but he ignored the pain and continued firing. The last of the pirates scattered as their numbers dwindled, making them easy targets for the rest of Shepard's squad. When all of them had stopped moving, Shepard let his extremely dead batarian friend fall to the ground with them. Tali ran past him and started shutting down the engine. "It's off," she said a moment later, turning around. "We did it."

Shepard breathed a sigh of relief. "At least the planet's safe." He noticed the other three giving him awkward looks. He knew they wanted to talk about him literally shooting down the offer of a truce, but they had one more problem to solve. "Tali, can you find the coordinates for the main facility on this rock? This 'Balak' is still here somewhere with hostages." He applied the medigel to his arm and felt the soothing effects of the salve kick in, stitching his wounds together like magic.

"Are we going after him to save the hostages or to kill Balak?" Tali stared at him, her eyes boring a hole through Shepard's.

"What does it matter? Doing either completes both objectives." Garrus interjected.

"It matters," Liara added, not looking at anyone in particular.

"Just get the location." Shepard spun around and strode away without waiting for a response. He couldn't face Tali's accusatory gaze right now. He hoped he was doing this for the right reasons, but his heart was too conflicted to give an honest answer. He wanted to say he would do anything to save the civilians, but the thought of Balak getting away made his blood boil. When they were just nameless pirates, he could put aside his past and treat them like any other hostile. After hearing that batarian nonchalantly state their original purpose of enslaving the outpost, though, his emotions were running high. He didn't have the luxury to dwell on his intentions; one way or another, it was time to end this.


	9. Chapter 9: Justice

**Hey everyone! Here is the conclusion of the Terra Nova mission. Having Shepard struggle to maintain his morality when faced with a nightmare from his past was fun to write about. As always, feel free to let me know what you think of the chapter! And don't worry, this won't be the last time Mindoir will show up.**

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"Why the FUCK does a research station have giant, rolling rocket towers?!" Shepard ramped off a small hill, giving Garrus a clear line of sight on one of the mobile contraptions. The ensuing explosion brought the raised railroad track crumbling down, though the vacuum of space kept the debris from erupting in flames. Unfortunately, the jump allowed a missile from one of the other turrets to land a direct hit on the weak underside of the Mako. Their momentum completely stopped, throwing everyone forward in their seats. The tank did a half flip before crashing to the ground on its back. Shepard dangled from his restraints and shook the daze from his head.

"Is everyone okay?!"

A chorus of groans let him know they were all alive, but even from his upside-down position he could see Tali's foot was twisted at an unnatural angle. He knew they only had a few seconds before the towers fired at them again. The Mako could take maybe three more shots before it exploded. With Tali unable to run, her survival depended on getting this machine back in working condition. But they needed time.

Shepard released the buckles and fell onto the ceiling. "Get this thing running again! I'll distract the turrets!"

"What? Wait Shepard, you can't-" Whatever Tali was going to say was cut off as Shepard kicked open the door and emerged from the Mako. He saw the next two rockets already on their way and leapt as far as he could off the top of the vehicle. The heat from the explosion sent him flying a few extra feet before tumbling across the rocks. A quick glance let him know the Mako was still in one piece, if barely, and he took off sprinting at the turrets. He unleashed a spray of bullets at both, drawing their attention away from his friends still trapped in the tank. _Well, it worked._ He saw a dip in the ground and dove into it, shielding himself from the missiles. A shower of dust blanketed him from the impact, but the ridge kept him safe. He had to keep moving, though, or the towers would refocus on the others.

Shepard fired his gun while he ran, but he doubted it would put anything more than a dent in the thing's shields. With no more cover left, he raced as fast as he could in one direction and, when the yellow streaks flew from the towers, spun around and sprinted back. This tactic worked surprisingly well, and he did the same thing for the next several volleys. By this point, his rifle managed to puncture through to the metal shell of the nearest tower. However, he felt his strength waning, and his breath came in short, ragged gasps. _Come on guys, I can't keep this up_. His burning muscles screamed as he pushed them harder, barely outstripping the incoming blast. _I got this. Just one more._

A loud boom made Shepard trip in surprise. It came much earlier than the repetitive shots from the machines. _Does that mean…?_

Sure enough, the Mako roared across the ground once more. One shot was all that was needed for the tower Shepard had damaged. The tank careened haphazardly across the landscape, causing several of its shots to miss. Fortunately, the turret also had trouble hitting the seemingly possessed vehicle. After a rather long period of time, the turret finally met the fate of its comrades. Shepard laid on his back, slowly recovering from his exertions, while the Mako trundled over to him. Smoke poured out of the hood and sparks periodically shot out from its belly, but the tank came to a stop without falling to pieces. Tali jumped out first, clumsily landing on one foot and hobbling over to where he was laying.

"Are you hurt?" She knelt down next to him, sweeping across his body for signs of damage.

"Just…a bit winded." Shepard pushed himself up to a sitting position; years of training and executing missions had greatly reduced the time he needed to recover. "What about you? When we crashed, it looked like your ankle was pretty messed up."

"Something's definitely wrong down there, but I can walk on it. Probably no broken bones." Liara and Garrus joined them, both looking particularly frazzled. The best term Shepard could come up with for the asari was "shell-shocked." _Makes sense._ Garrus didn't look any worse for wear; Shepard didn't know if anything could faze that turian. Something occurred to him as he pondered the state of his companions.

"So, who was responsible for that fine piece of driving while I was out here getting my ass shot at?" Liara weakly raised her hand. "Really? Nice job! Does that mean we have a new driver for the squad?" All three of them shook their heads vigorously.

"No offense Liara, but you make Shepard's driving look good, and he almost blew us up," Garrus said.

"None taken. I don't know how anyone is supposed to operate those things with any semblance of finesse." Liara held her arms together and glanced back at the Mako almost fearfully.

"What's that? Shepard's a good driver?" Shepard flashed a grin at them.

"Let's just say you're less shit than the untrained asari." Shepard pretended to pout at Garrus' words, making the other two laugh. Shepard stood up and stretched, cracking his spine as he torqued his upper body a few times. The levity left the group as they surveyed the main base.

"Do you think your leg will make it through another fight, Tali?" She pressed her foot to the ground and put some weight on it before nodding at Shepard. "Alright. Let's do this."

The front atrium was deserted as they advanced into the building. Sounds of chatter echoed from the large chamber next door, and Shepard motioned for the rest of his team to form up behind him. A ramp led up to a lip in front of them, obscuring the layout of the room. They would have to rush in blind without knowing the enemy numbers or locations.

"Tali, you and Liara watch the right side as we come up. Blast anything close to us. Liara, use your biotics on anything outside of Tali's range. Garrus and I will cover the left side. Same type of plan, I'll handle anything close while you focus on long range. Try to find somewhere to bunker down as soon as possible." Shepard took a deep breath. "Good luck."

"Shepard." Tali touched his arm as he turned away to lead the charge. "Just…don't forget yourself. Okay?"

As he met her eyes, he tried to force out some sort of reassurance. In the end, "I'll try," was all he could manage. He broke contact and signaled the team, and they dashed up the ramp right into the middle of the batarians' makeshift lair.

Shepard bashed a pirate into the railing with his shoulder, driving his fist into the man's throat. As he collapsed with a gurgle, another batarian, surrounded by blue, flew off their landing and smashed into the large pillar in the middle of the room, clearing the immediate vicinity for the team. They took cover behind rectangular pots as the slavers scrambled to meet their sudden intrusion. A couple of drones started flying towards them, but Tali made one her pet while Garrus blew up the other with a well-placed bullet. The turian used the confusion caused by Tali's hack to race up to the top level, giving him a good vantage of the battlefield. Shepard peeked around the corner and saw a batarian pointing at him and glowing with power. Shepard's cover lifted off the ground, causing him to fall over in surprise.

"Oh, shit!" He dove out of the way as his former protection hurtled at his head. It missed Shepard and headed straight for Liara and Tali, threatening to smash them against their own hiding spot. Liara saw it coming and made a punching motion at the block of concrete, completely reversing its momentum and returning it to sender. It crushed the batarian biotic against the wall with a sickening crunch.

The fight settled into a stalemate as the batarians formed up across from Liara and Tali, staying safely behind cover. Both sides exchanged gunfire, but neither made much progress in weakening the other. Garrus tried to sneak around the top and flank them, but the slavers saw him at the last minute and now had him pinned down and cut off from Shepard and the others.

"Shepard, I'm gonna need some help soon," Garrus said through their comms. "They're approaching my position, and I can't lean out without getting shot to pieces."

"Heard." Shepard considered their options. They needed to break into the enemy line, but he would never make it over without being gunned down first.

"Liara, can you pick up their cover like that other guy did?"

"Stopping that projectile took almost everything I had. I don't believe I could do it again, Shepard."

"Well…what about me?"

"What?" Liara gave Shepard a blank look.

"Could you throw me?" Tali looked at him like he was crazy, which he probably was.

"Um…yes, I could. I don't see-"

"Just send me across the middle to the part behind these guys. Think you can do that without killing me?"

Liara examined his landing area. "Yes, but I can't guarantee you won't break anything."

"I'll worry about that. As soon as I'm gone, you and Tali push up on this side. They should be too confused to put up an organized resistance, but don't take risks."

"Says the guy asking to be thrown a hundred feet through the air." Tali flinched as a bullet chipped away a part of their cover near her face. "I don't like this plan. If anything goes wrong, you'll end up dead."

"I'll be fine." He gave a confident smile. "Thanks for worrying, though. Ready, Liara?"

"I'm sorry in advance for this." Liara summoned her biotics, and Shepard felt his sense of gravity disappear. Liara pointed, and Shepard zoomed away. The rush made him feel giddy as he rapidly approached the wall. _Okay, maybe not such a good idea._ Luckily, a batarian decided to run across at that exact moment, giving him a way to stop his momentum without serious injury. Hopefully.

A split second before impact, the batarian saw him coming, and his eyes almost bugged out of his skull at the sight of Shepard flying spread-eagle at his face. Shepard struck him and sent both of them flying into the wall. Shepard was pretty sure the slaver had cracked his skull, but he popped the guy with a couple of rounds just in case. Shouts filled the room as the pirates adjusted to the new threat. With their focus split between Shepard, Garrus, and Tali and Liara, the batarians soon fell into a disorganized panic. Shepard's shields had shorted a while ago, and new bullet wounds appeared in various places on his body. Despite this, they soon had the enemy whittled down to only one slaver. Liara picked up the unfortunate survivor and left him floating helplessly in the air. Tali used her shotgun to send him spinning through the air towards Garrus, who in turn blew off his head, pushing the body over near Shepard. When the corpse ceased hovering and landed at Shepard's feet, he shot it once in the chest. "There. Now we've all contributed."

Garrus came down from the top level and approached Shepard, gun hoisted over his shoulder. "I'm beginning to wonder if you might be suicidal, Shepard."

"Someone had to save your sorry ass," Shepard shot back with a grin.

"I asked for 'some help.' I didn't think you would try to become a bird."

Shepard just shrugged, too pumped up with adrenaline from the battle to give a witty comeback. Sharp pricks of pain reminded him of his multiple wounds, cutting through the euphoria he always got while fighting. _Looks like another long day for Chakwas_.

Tali and Liara joined them a few seconds later. Besides Tali's limp becoming more pronounced, it looked like Shepard was the only one who took any significant damage during the exchange, much to his relief. "Good job guys. I think I see the hostages through a window over there." Shepard pointed at a small room fixed to the side of the chamber, where a couple of faces were peering through a glass door. "We just have to open that up, and then we can get out of here."

"You humans. You're almost more trouble than you're worth." The four of them whipped around at the new voice, guns trained on the owner. A couple of batarians stood at the top of the staircase above them, a menacing looking varren prowling nearby. The speaker held up a device in his left hand. "Not so fast. Kill me, and the hostages die too."

Shepard felt his heart sink as he realized the situation he was in. This is exactly what he feared would happen; he knew what the filth's demands would be before it even spoke.

"I'm leaving this asteroid. If you try to stop me, I'll detonate these charges, and your little helper and all of her friends are going to die."

Shepard ground his teeth as he thought of a response. "You think we're just gonna let you walk away from this? After everything you've done?"

The batarian looked incensed by Shepard's comment. "What I've done? This is nothing compared to…" Shepard stopped listening as the terrorist droned on and on about the injustices humanity had reaped upon his people. Shepard's hands started shaking as he contemplated letting a person who had attempted genocide, a _slaver_ , go free. The familiar screams filled his ears as that fateful day started seeping into his mind. _No. Not now. I can't deal with this right now._

The speaker, who he assumed was the 'Balak' the other group had mentioned, had paused, clearly waiting for Shepard's response to something. Shepard cleared his throat. "What's to stop you from blowing the bomb up anyway as soon as you're free?"

Balak sneered. "Typical human question. You have no understanding of the word honor."

"Says the guy who was about to destroy four million people with a giant rock," Garrus interjected.

"Bah! That planet belongs to the batarians! We are claiming retribution for the wrongs the Council and the humans have done to us!"

"Just shut up and answer the fucking question!" Shepard's finger itched to pull the trigger. _If he says one more thing about the poor, defenseless batarians…_

"The device only functions within a certain radius. Once I'm outside of that, your pathetic engineers will be safe. As will I."

Shepard looked at Tali. "Can you verify?"

"One moment." She typed a few things into her omnitool. "My scans back up what he says, Shepard."

Balak crossed his arms, a smug look on his face. "So? Am I free to go?"

Garrus turned to Shepard. "We can't just let him get away! What if he does this again somewhere else? We have to look at the bigger picture."

"Bigger picture? Those are people in there, Garrus. We can't let them die! Not while we can save them!" Tali angrily faced down Garrus, both convinced the other was wrong and neither budging an inch.

"I agree with Tali. It would be wrong to let this monster go free, but it would be more wrong to become monsters ourselves in order to stop him." Liara didn't look at the team, choosing to keep her pistol trained on Balak.

They all waited for Shepard to speak. Sweat started to drip from his forehead as he struggled with his decision. For all he knew, this Balak could have been a part of Mindoir. Even if he wasn't, he represented the perpetrators and had probably done similar things to other colonies. Given freedom, he would undoubtedly do so again. How could he subject anyone else to the things he himself had been through? He couldn't. _This thing has to die._

As he raised his weapon, he saw Tali step back away from him. Though he couldn't see her face, he could read her body language. She was…repulsed. By his choice, by him, by both maybe. _Look how far you've come, Shepard. You're no better than he is._ Tali took another step back, her gun still hanging by her side. "Shepard…" The hurt in her voice was the final straw.

"Get out of here," he barked at Balak. The batarian sauntered over to the exit with his entourage, carefully keeping the detonator in sight at all times. Shepard wasn't watching; he was afraid if he looked at Balak again he would just shoot him. After they left, Shepard let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding.

"You did the right thing, Shepard." Tali shuffled her feet. "I mean, I think you did at least."

"Me too." Liara stored her pistol and gave him a warm smile. Garrus didn't say anything, but he didn't look upset either. Then again, it was hard to tell with turians.

Shepard felt as if a weight had been lifted off his chest. He returned Liara's smile. "I think so too. I really do." He walked over to Tali and put a hand on her shoulder. "Thank you," he said simply. He looked at the room the hostages were trapped in. Trapped, but still in one piece. "Let's get these civilians to safety."


	10. Chapter 10: Ghosts

**Hey guys! Sorry for posting later than normal, it has been a crazy week. Someone mentioned that they would like to see longer chapters, so I would like to get your opinions on that. Do you like the chapter length as it is, or would you prefer me to add more details to the scenes? If you want to let me know your thoughts on that matter, a PM would be fine. Thank you so much for your support! I really appreciate all of the feedback I receive, and I love seeing what you think of the story. Enjoy!**

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"Honestly, Commander, you could try to keep yourself in one piece. Keep this up and you'll be more scars than skin."

"Are you sure we haven't reached that point already, Doc?" Shepard asked wryly. He sat on one of the examination tables while Chakwas tended to the bullet wounds on his arm. His shirtless form revealed a conglomeration of old burns, cuts, and other injuries that hadn't completely healed. The latticework of scars crisscrossed over his rippling muscles, creating a truly formidable sight. Tali thought so at least. She was stuck in one of the infirmary beds for a day or two while the medicine Chakwas had given her worked its magic on her sprained ankle. Thankfully she only had a partially torn ligament, and she should be fit for duty in a couple days instead of a couple weeks. Tali had been surprised with Chakwas' knowledge of quarian anatomy, and she had managed to treat Tali without any suit openings or clean rooms required.

Tali watched the doctor stitch together another hole in Shepard's arm. Her deft movements had it closed in under a minute; Chakwas was truly an artist in the med-bay. Tali's gaze wandered back over Shepard's exposed torso as Chakwas wrapped the last bandage around Shepard's forearm. Her mouth went dry as she took this perfect opportunity to stare, feeling the heat rise up her neck to her cheeks. She was disappointed when Chakwas finished and Shepard pulled his shirt back on. _On the bright side, I can breathe normally again._

"Thanks again, Dr. Chakwas. I don't know what I would do without you." Shepard stood up and gave his arm a few experimental swings. He winced as he brought it above his head, and Chakwas chuckled.

"You wouldn't last a week." She firmly placed his arm back down by his side. "Please restrain yourself from undoing everything I just did, Commander." Shepard gave her a sheepish grin, to which Chakwas rolled her eyes. She looked at the clock on her omnitool and walked to the door. "I'm off for lunch. I'll check the progress on your ankle when I return, Tali."

"Thank you, doctor."

"Of course. That is my job, after all." Chakwas disappeared from view as the door closed, leaving Tali and Shepard alone in the med-bay. Tali really liked the doctor: she seemed to give off a motherly vibe for the whole crew, Tali included.

Shepard plopped down on the bed beside Tali's. "How's my favorite quarian feeling?"

"Your favorite, huh? Out of all the quarians you know? Flatterer." Shepard's eyebrow quirked upwards, and Tali gulped at the suggestive tone of her voice. _Keelah, why did I say that? Must be the meds._ "Er, I mean, you know…" She struggled to think of something to say, but her mind was just throwing useless things at her like 'How's the weather' and 'What color is your underwear?' _AH! Stop that! Where did that even come from?_ She decided to use Shepard's question to move the conversation away from dangerous territory. "My leg is feeling much better, just a slight ache now." Tali didn't look at Shepard, focusing instead on her foot as she waited for his response.

After what felt like an eternity, Shepard broke the silence. "Good. I'm glad." Tali could hear the barely contained mirth in his voice, and her mortification deepened. She wished she could find a hole and bury herself in it.

"So…how about that last mission?" Tali fiddled with her hands as she tried to change the subject.

"Yeah. Things got pretty heated, huh." Shepard's tone shifted from light to serious. His face became hollow looking, as if all the energy had been sapped away. Tali remembered their confrontations with the batarians and immediately forgot her awkwardness. She needed to understand what had hurt this man so much. She longed to help him, but she couldn't even attempt to unless he opened up to her. She sat up and let her feet dangle off the side of her bed, drawing herself up even with the Commander.

"What happened, Shepard?" They both knew what she meant. Shepard looked down at his knees, his jaw locked in place. Tali let the quiet stretch out; she knew this was a sensitive subject, and she wasn't about to push any farther than her initial question already had.

Shepard eventually cleared his throat, messing with one of his thumbs as he spoke. "Have you ever heard of Mindoir?"

"Vaguely. I know it's a human colony."

"That's correct. I grew up there." A small smile formed on Shepard's lips as he continued. "I lived with my parents and my little sister. We had this huge farm on the outskirts of town. Rows and rows of corn." He let out a small chuckle. "I always hated it there as a kid. I wanted to be in a city with people and excitement, not stuck in the middle of nowhere. It was incredibly dull, you know. But…it was peaceful."

Shepard paused and took a breath. "One day, I was out repairing one of our automated tractors. Sometimes they pull too much corn all at once, you see, so every now and then you have to go unjam them. It was supposed to be my sister's turn, but it was her birthday, so Mom made me do it instead. I was so mad.

"That's when the batarians hit. All I saw were these huge flashes of light coming from town. I couldn't hear any gunfire, but the bombs sounded like a constant peal of thunder. It took me a good half hour to run back to our home; I had walked to the tractor instead using the ATV because I had wanted to take a while." Tali felt dread creep its way into her stomach. She was pretty sure she knew where this story was going.

"When I reached our yard, the first thing I saw were our two horses lying dead in the pen. The back door had been ripped off its hinges; that's where the dog was. I ran into the house through there into our kitchen. I found Dad there." Shepard's voice had slipped into a monotone, his face expressionless. "He was dead. Something had ripped a huge hole in his chest and belly. Before I could register what I was seeing, a gunshot came from the living room. I took the pistol Dad had in his hand and creeped to the hallway. A batarian was standing over my sister. I don't really recall what happened then, but the next thing I remember I was sitting in a pool of someone's blood. Not mine. I was holding my sister. Her face…most of it was just gone. The bullet had…had come in the back…" Shepard choked up, fighting to continue. "Well, she was dead. So was Mom. I spent the next week hiding and surviving off our food stores until the Alliance finally chased the bastards off the planet." He chewed his lip and shook his head slightly before looking up at Tali. "That's why I hate slavers. It took me a long time to not simply throw in every batarian with them; I still struggle with that sometimes. But slavers: I can never forgive them for what happened. Never."

"Shepard…I'm so sorry." Tali reached over and lightly placed a hand over his. There wasn't any tension behind the gesture; she could almost see the waves of pain emanating from Shepard, and she wanted to support him in any way she could. And right now, he needed to know he wasn't alone. They sat like that for a long time, neither one of them saying a word. Tali watched the sorrow slowly drain from Shepard's face. The tears that had threatened to fall were blinked away, and his jaw resumed its normal, unclenched position. Tali felt the roughness of his hand even through her glove, knuckles calloused from countless fights. Beaten and scarred, but never broken, just like their owner. Hearing about the horror he had lived through had done nothing but deepen her admiration for the Commander.

Shepard patted her hand with his free one, smiling. "I've never told anyone about that before. It feels good, knowing that someone else knows. Thank you."

"Of course. I just sat here and listened."

"Sometimes that's all it takes." Shepard stood up, and Tali's arm fell back to her side. "I'd better get back to my duties. Paperwork waits for no one. You rest up now and get better, okay?"

"I will. You'd better stop by for lunch tomorrow, Commander," Tali said lightly, feeling the mood in the room change.

Shepard gave her a mock salute and a grin. "Yes ma'am." Tali laughed, and Shepard departed to take care of the more mundane tasks that befall a Commander in the Alliance.

* * *

 _Spirits, this thing is trashed._ Garrus reached for the ratchet and popped off a fastener, enabling him to remove yet another piece of plating. While most of the Mako had survived unscathed, the underside was a different story. The metal was warped in several places from the heat of the explosion, and the rear thrusters would need to be replaced. If the rocket had hit them at a slightly different angle, the fuel cell would have been critically damaged. Best case scenario, the tank wouldn't have turned back on; worst case, they would all have been charred skeletons.

"Need a hand?" Garrus saw Shepard's head poking around the bottom of the Mako.

"I don't think she wants to talk to you right now; you've done enough damage to her already." Garrus rolled out from under the tank and stood up, stretching as he did. He had been working for over two hours already, and the break was welcome. Plus, he had some things to discuss.

"Alright…what is that human expression? Spill the peas?"

"I think you mean spill the beans."

Garrus rolled his eyes. "Don't know why that makes a difference. Either way, spill them."

Shepard crossed his arms with a slightly bemused appearance. "About what?"

"What's going on between you and Tali?"

Besides shifting his feet slightly, Shepard showed no reaction. "What do you mean?"

"Come on, Shepard. I do have eyes. You eat lunch with her every single day."

"She was afraid to eat in front of you guys, and now it's just a thing. I'm not allowed to eat with a crewmember?"

"You don't eat alone with the rest of us." Garrus smirked. "When do I get my date with Shepard?"

"Please. I'm way out of your league, Garrus."

"Keep telling yourself that." Shepard gave Garrus a friendly shove, eliciting a chuckle from the turian. The Commander leaned against the Mako so that they were both facing the rest of the cargo bay.

"It's not like that. I think you're just jealous."

"Hm. Perhaps. Still, that doesn't explain your outing on the Citadel."

Shepard looked surprised. "How did you…" His eyes fell on the krogan standing at the far end of the hangar. "Wrex."

"Candles, soft music, low lighting, you really went all out."

"First of all, Tali picked the place, not me, and she only chose it because it served both quarians and humans. It was an accident; neither of us knew what it would be like before we got there."

"Riiiiight." Garrus' sarcastic tone drew a glare from Shepard.

"Believe me or not, that's the truth."

"Okay, let's say all of that other stuff is just coincidence. What about that last mission?"

Shepard shrugged his shoulders. "What about it?"

"I swear, this is like pulling teeth. Humans have to go through that too, right? Anyway, you couldn't keep your eyes off of her the whole time, and I know she's the reason you let that criminal escape." _Which was a mistake_. Garrus stopped himself from saying anything, though; that was next on the agenda.

Shepard sighed and brushed a hand over his face, finally dropping his stoic facade. "I really don't know. Tali…she's not like anyone I've ever met. I like being around her. A lot. She's kind, smart, funny, and can shoot a shotgun as good as any krogan I've seen, Wrex included. But it's complicated."

Garrus folded his arms. "Sounds pretty straightforward to me."

"She's a quarian. She can't even be outside her suit without risking death. Then there's the Pilgrimage. After Saren has been stopped, she'll be on her way back to her people. Speaking of Saren, there's also the fact that we're in the middle of a manhunt trying to stop the destruction of an entire galaxy." Shepard blew out his cheeks in exasperation.

"Sounds like you've given this some thought."

"Some."

"Have you talked to her about it?"

Shepard shook his head. "I should. But not yet. I still need to sort through everything myself." He smiled at Garrus. "Thanks for the talk. I came down here to see if you needed to get anything off your chest, but I guess you helped me instead."

Garrus scratched the side of his face. "Actually, I do have something else we need to talk about."

"Shoot."

"Who? Where?" Garrus instinctively reached for his rifle.

"No no, it's just an expression. Sorry. Go ahead."

Garrus relaxed again. "Oh. Humans and their idioms." _How do I start this?_ Garrus considered his words carefully; it was ingrained in his bones not to question his superiors, but he had always thought of himself as a bad turian anyway.

"I don't think we should have let Balak get away."

Shepard nodded. "I thought you might say that."

"I hope I'm not out of line bringing this up."

"You can talk to me about any concerns you have, Garrus. I don't want a crew of mindless automatons; if I did, I could just have a hold full of mechs. Much cheaper to maintain."

Garrus knew Shepard was different from his previous bosses, but this type of attitude was still new to him. "Thank you, Commander. You remember our talk about my time in C-Sec, how I didn't like being bogged down with the bureaucracy?"

"I remember."

"There was this one case in particular, a real nasty piece of work. I was tracking black market trade on the Citadel; most of the stuff is harmless, not worth the resources to pursue. Then, the sale of body parts started to rapidly increase. Organs, mostly. The numbers were way above average, so we figured there must be a new player in town. Or a psychopathic murderer. Either one needed to be dealt with before word got out and the citizens started to panic. Long story short, some of the organs we found belonged to people who were still alive and had no recollection of losing, say, a liver. The evidence pointed to a Dr. Saleon, a salarian geneticist. After interrogating some of his employees, we discovered he was using them as test tubes to grow the organs in. If they were viable, he would cut the organs out of them and sell them on the black market. If they weren't, he'd leave the samples in the patients. Most of the victims were a mess, but only on the inside."

Shepard made a face. "That's horrible. Did you catch him?"

Garrus grimaced. "No. That's the worst part. He blew up his lab, grabbed some of his employees, and ran to the nearest space dock. By the time I found him, he was already leaving. He threatened to kill his hostages if we tried to stop him."

It looked like a lightbulb went off over Shepard's head. "I see where this is going."

"Yeah. I ordered Citadel defense to shoot him down, but I was countermanded by my own department. They were worried about casualties from the debris since the ship was so close to the station." Garrus made a chopping motion with his hand. "Those hostages were dead either way; as soon as that monster got free, he would harvest their organs like the rest and leave them to rot. But no one listened. Now, who knows how many people Dr. Saleon has killed with his experiments."

He turned to face Shepard. "Balak was insane. He was willing to destroy an entire colony to get back at the humans. Millions of people. And we let him walk away. What if he does it again? A dozen or so scientists are not worth the risk of losing whole planets to a terrorist."

Shepard stroked his chin while he picked his words. "I understand your point, Garrus. However, that kind of reasoning can lead you down a dark path. We don't know what Balak will do now. The Alliance will keep a sharp eye out for him, so it's unlikely he'll be able to pull off a stunt like that again. But we do know that those people would have died if we had killed him today. Letting Balak blow up that bomb would be the same as lining up those civilians and gunning them down yourself. I'm not saying it wasn't a hard call, or that you don't have sound reasoning, but I believe I made the right decision."

Garrus' mandibles flared a bit as he let Shepard's words sink in. "Hm. Maybe you're right. It doesn't make it any easier, but I see your point."

Shepard gave him a smile. "I appreciate your honesty, Garrus. We don't have to agree on everything, but as long as you can understand where I'm coming from and we don't have a problem in the field, that's fine with me. Now, about this Dr. Saleon. Did you ever find out what happened to him?"

It felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from Garrus' shoulders. Even though they still didn't see eye to eye, it was good to know they both accepted where they stood on the matter. _If only C-Sec had worked like this, I might have stayed._ "I kept my ear to the ground. He changed his name to Dr. Heart at one point – his idea of a joke, I suppose – but the military didn't believe it was worth checking out. I still have the transponder frequency for his ship, but no one wants to investigate."

Shepard eyes lit up. "Well then, I guess we'll have to do it. Send me the coordinates, and we'll go by when we have the chance."

"I appreciate that, Commander."

"No problem." Shepard made a fist and stuck out his arm towards Garrus. Garrus stared at it blankly.

"What? You don't know what a fist-bump is?"

"A…fist-bump?" Garrus could surmise what he was supposed to do from the name, and gingerly touched his fist to Shepard's.

"There you go. We'll make a human out of you yet." Shepard waved as he went back to the elevator. Garrus just shrugged and looked back at his assortment of tools strewn about the floor. _Ah well, guess it's back to work._


	11. Chapter 11: Legacy

**Hey everyone! Sorry this came out a little late; I had some trouble deciding what to put in this chapter. Next up will be the Noveria mission, finally moving the main plot forward after a little downtime. Thank you for everything and enjoy!**

* * *

"Wrex, is this the place?"

Wrex examined the front of the building, noting the bright insignia the idiot always put on his 'secret bases.' "Yep. This is it."

He didn't even know why he had told Shepard about his family's armor. The guy kept coming back over and over, asking all those damn questions. Normally, his curt, one-word replies let people know he wasn't the talkative sort. But oh no, not Shepard. _I think I've said more words this month than I did in the last century._ Somehow, Shepard fenagled Wrex into bringing up his father, a.k.a. the backstabbing salarian-humping shit-face who tried to murder his own son. One thing led to another, and now here they were, about to raid one of Tonn Actus' safehouses in order to get his heirloom back.

"Should we really be taking the time to do this, Commander?" Ashley put up her hands at Wrex' growl. "No offense, it's just this doesn't have anything to do with the Alliance or the Council."

"We had to pass through this system on our way to Noveria, and crew morale is very important to maintain. At least the ones that could headbutt a hole in the hull." Wrex let out a rumbling chuckle at Shepard's comment. Kaidan didn't have any input, preoccupied with checking the perimeter and ensuring no one snuck up on them.

Shepard pulled his assault rifle off of his shoulder and extended it to its full size, the mechanical whirs reconstructing the gun quickly and efficiently. "Weapons out. We're going in hot: assume hostile. I expect these smugglers won't be happy to see Alliance soldiers. Or Wrex, for that matter." Wrex readied his shotgun and felt the familiar thrill of battle set in. He twisted his maw into a grin, the scars on the right side of his face making it lopsided. Almost before the doors were fully open, Wrex charged into the structure with a load roar. He pulled up short as he realized they were in a small, empty entranceway.

"I think you scared them off," Kaidan said with a hint of humor, though his rasp covered most of the inflection.

"Shit LT, you should really get your throat checked out. You sound like you're dying." Ashley put a hand on her hip and smirked at Kaidan.

"Smartass. Is that any way to talk an officer, Gunnery Chief Williams?"

"Oh, you did not just pull rank on me." Ashley gave him a playful shove, and he grinned back at her.

Shepard looked at Wrex. "Maybe we should give them the room. You and I can take whatever's behind that door."

"Good with me." Wrex laughed at Ashley's glare and Kaidan's red face.

Shepard approached the connecting door and motioned for the squad to fan out around him. "They probably know we're here now, thanks to a certain krogan who will remain nameless." Wrex just shrugged at Shepard's jab. "Kaidan, stay back and try to disrupt them as much as you can. Ashley, cover him. Wrex, you and I will charge ahead and get an angle on them. Ready?" They nodded. Shepard hit the button, and the metal sheet slid back into the wall.

Immediately, bullets rained down on them as they scurried into the room. Despite his rather berserk style of fighting, hundreds of years of combat had given Wrex an extraordinarily analytical mind. For example, based on the rate of fire, he estimated the men positioned about twenty feet in front of them had at most three seconds before their guns would require a cooldown period. Shepard had already bludgeoned his way to the left, bowling over smugglers and boxes alike in his fervor. Wrex hesitated behind a group of crates as he timed his approach. He caught the last few bullets with his barrier as he stepped out, a triumphant light in his eyes as he heard the familiar hiss of an overcharged thermal chamber. The terrified combatants fumbled for their side-arms, but before they could draw their weapons, Wrex had eviscerated one with his shotgun and used his biotics to send the other cartwheeling through the air. _They never learn._

With Shepard secured in the opposite corner, the squad had three directions of attack on the enemy; a couple panicked and broke cover. Those that ran were rapidly gunned down before they reached the relative safety of a storeroom in the back. Wrex spotted his main target engaged in a fierce firefight with Shepard near the far wall, his distinctive red armor giving him away. _Nice color_.

As he reassessed the battlefield, attempting to plan out a route to take down Actus personally, he saw a convenient propane tank lying nearby. With little effort, he hurled the canister into the middle of a cluster of smugglers and used a warp to incite a magnificent explosion, coating the area in decorative, bloody hues of blue and red. Wrex seized the opportunity and lumbered over to a small container in the middle of the room. His improvised bomb allowed Ashley and Kaidan to move up as well. Kaidan periodically left people vulnerable with intense shocks from shield overloads or biotic pulls that left them suspended and powerless. Ashley easily tore apart those marked by Kaidan's attacks with a few bursts from her assault rifle. With the enemy numbers dwindling, Wrex decided it was safe enough to get Actus' attention.

Shrouded in blue, Wrex pushed Actus' cover into him, smashing his shins with a satisfying crash. The turian yelped and stumbled backwards, confused by the box' betrayal. Before he could recover, Wrex sprinted to him and picked him up by his neck with one hand. With a toothy grin, the krogan began mercilessly headbutting Actus into a pulp. Actus struggled in vain to dislodge the iron vice of Wrex' grip as the plates on his head slowly began to crack. Wrex dropped his shotgun and grabbed the turian with both hands before bringing their heads together with a final, ferocious burst of energy. Wrex had a slight ringing somewhere behind his eyes, but he grunted with satisfaction upon seeing the ruined wreck that used to be Actus' face.

It didn't take long to mop up the few remaining adversaries once their leader was dead. Shepard stowed his gun and walked over to Actus' body, nudging him onto to his back and inspecting Wrex' handiwork. He let out a low whistle. "Anyone ever told you you're kinda scary?"

"What do you think?" The gore on Wrex' crest did nothing to diminish his intimidating smile, inside of which a few flecks of blood stuck to his teeth.

Shepard shuddered. "I was going to say something sarcastic, but that's downright terrifying." Shepard glanced around the large warehouse. "Any ideas where he might have stored your armor?"

"It's worth a lot of money to some people because it's so old. I'd guess he'd be keeping it in a safer place than most of the other stuff." Wrex looked at the door the smugglers had tried fleeing to. "Maybe in there."

"Alright then. Kaidan, Ashley, keep a lookout and make sure no one comes in behind us."

"Sure thing, Skipper." The two positioned themselves so they had a good line of sight on the entrance and started chitchatting about nothing in particular. Wrex followed Shepard to the storeroom, which opened up without requiring any sort of authorization. _The security here is worse than Tuchanka. Well, maybe not, but at least there the guards are krogan._ Inside, they found a small office with some lockers hugging the walls. They were made out of a mesh, allowing Wrex to see the contents clearly. A dozen or so relics from all different ages and species glinted behind their prisons; Actus had accumulated a rather impressive collection. As he slowly circled the office, the familiar shape of his grandfather's armor gleamed dully from a storage box in the back corner.

"This is it," Wrex said, gesturing at the mesh.

Shepard went and examined the lock. "Seems like we need someone to hack this. Kaidan has a good amount of technical expertise, I'll bring him in to crack it."

"What's the model number?"

"Um…" Shepard viewed the electronic box from different angles until he found the small batch of characters etched into the side. "Looks like it came from Saronis Applications. M-94?"

Wrex brought up his shotgun and blew the lock apart. Sparks flew from the destroyed console, and the door slowly swung open. "Always works on those." Usually, locks such as these defaulted to remain lock upon sustaining critical damage. However, for some reason, this type followed a different protocol. It had saved his life once, ensuring he would never forget that useful workaround.

Shepard looked impressed. "Where did you learn that?"

Wrex shook his head. "Doesn't matter. Besides, I only tell you stories on the Normandy." He reached in and grabbed the metal suit, bringing it out into the light. It had accrued a large amount of grime and rust, unsurprisingly. Most of the paint had chipped away long ago, and it was easily three times as heavy as his mercenary uniform. It was also much less effective; from the looks of it, even in its prime, it probably couldn't stop a single shot from a high caliber weapon.

This sorry excuse for protection made Wrex snort. "I can't believe my ancestors ever wore this piece of crap, but at least I've got it back."

Shepard crossed his arms and smiled at Wrex. "I'm glad we could help you out."

"I may be starting to like you, Shepard." And he meant it. He had seen pretty much everything during his travels, but he hadn't ever met someone like Shepard. Something about him drew people in and made them want to listen. Plenty of people had that ability, but add in a sense of humor, a strong moral compass, and the martial skill of a krogan to boot, and Shepard became one of a kind. Wrex was even beginning to warm up to the ground team, though he would never tell them so. Especially Garrus; there were some lines no orange-blooded krogan dared to cross, and befriending a turian was one of them. At least not openly.

He heaved the armor over one of his shoulders and stomped back out into the warehouse. Ashley and Kaidan were arguing about which kind of football was better. "You actually use your foot to kick the ball. It's the whole point of the game," Kaidan said, mimicking the motion.

"That doesn't make it better, it just means the name makes more sense." Ashley saw Wrex and stopped their conversation, curious to see the prize for this mission. Her face revealed her opinion about the piece, but for once she was tactful and remained silent.

"Oh. It's…nice." Kaidan scratched his jaw and avoided Wrex' eyes.

"I know what it is. I don't plan on wearing it."

Shepard moved past them, leading the way to the exit. "We got what we came here for. Time to move on before anyone shows up." _Wouldn't mind another fight, but he's right._ They left the building, now a silent husk with only the dead to keep it company. Just the way Wrex liked it.

* * *

All six of Shepard's squad happened to be eating dinner at the same time, which was certainly a rare occurrence. Shepard was preoccupied with other things, including preparing for Noveria, leaving the team to themselves. In contrast to her earlier avoidance of people during meal times, Tali actively engaged the others during the light-hearted conversation. Wrex, as usual, said little, focusing on shoveling handfuls of food into his mouth. Garrus was in the middle of regaling them with stories from his days in C-Sec.

"…and he kept insisting there were fish in the lake. A giant, drunk krogan, just yelling about fish to no one in particular. We were sent to bring him in to sober up, but when we tried to pull him away from the bridge, he jumped right into the water!"

"I bet that made a splash," Kaidan laughed.

"He started flailing around; evidently he couldn't swim. So, young idiot that I was, I jumped in after him to try and be the hero. How hard could it be, right? Having never been in the water before, and dressed in full combat gear, I sank right to the bottom. Turns out turians don't swim very well."

"Everyone knows that," Ashley cackled.

"Well, I learned it the hard way. As I struggled in vain to get back to the surface, I remember thinking, isn't this a great way to die. Drowned in the damn Presidium lake. Luckily, someone who knew what they were doing dove in and fished us out with some flotation devices. For over a year, the people in C-Sec called me 'Fish.'"

They all chuckled at Garrus' misfortune. After a few seconds of eating, Ashley looked at Garrus curiously. "Do you have to deal with many krogan incidents on the Citadel? If they're anything like Wrex, I can't imagine that would be easy." Wrex gave a satisfied grunt.

"No, they mostly stay on Tuchanka or join merc groups. They aren't a significant enough percentage of the population on the Citadel to be a common cause of complaint."

"Thanks to the Genophage," Wrex piped up. Silence descended on the table as everyone went still. _Shit. Why did I say that?_ There was no turning back now, however. Besides, since he brought it up, he wanted to find out what the consensus on the subject was. Wrex stared directly at Garrus. "A horrible mistake that is costing my people their future."

Garrus fiddled with his fork and didn't say anything. Ashley and Kaidan glanced at each other, unsure of what to do. Wrex looked at the rest of the team. "What do you think about the Genophage?"

"War is war. But the Genophage breaks so many of the Council's own laws…" Kaidan shrugged. "We, humanity I mean, appeared long after that happened. I don't think I know enough to say anything one way or the other."

"You're right, LT. But if someone did that to us…" Ashley clenched her fist. "I'd want revenge. That's for sure."

 _She must be at least part krogan._ Wrex knew Ashley wasn't a fan of aliens, but he liked her attitude. Still, that was the kind of view that was destroying Tuchanka. They needed a cure, not another war.

Tali leaned forward in her seat. "Even if the Genophage was necessary, it's been hundreds of years. Surely the krogan have paid a high enough price by now." Her tone was almost pleading, and she started to wring her hands. "Why should children be punished for their parents' crimes, let alone for mistakes made generations ago."

Wrex nodded at the quarian. "Exactly."

Garrus turned to Tali with a grim face. "The krogan rebelled and almost defeated all of the Council races. What is to stop them from doing it again? And as for the quarians…you created the geth, Tali. The very things we are fighting right now." _Here we go._

Tali glared at Garrus. "So that justifies what happened to us? The last quarian who was around during the Morning War died centuries ago, but we are still treated with the same disdain as when it occurred. The Council has blocked several attempts to colonize a world, and they refuse to help us take back our home. How is leaving us stranded without a place to call our own for a crime none of us committed right?"

Garrus put up his hands placatingly, but he stood his ground. "If your ancestors hadn't performed illegal experiments with AI, none of this would have happened."

Liara put a hand on Garrus' arm. "That's not fair."

Tali didn't seem to hear her. "You think I don't know that?!" She stood up, practically shouting at Garrus. "Less than one percent of my people survived because of the geth! I can't even breathe unfiltered air without possibly dying, but you don't think we've been punished enough?"

Garrus seemed to realize how uncaring that sounded and stood up as well, trying to reason with the quarian. "Tali, I didn't mean-"

Tali jerked away from him. "Stop. You…I…I need to go." She quickly strode out of the mess hall before anyone could speak. Wrex zeroed in on Garrus, pinning him with an inscrutable gaze.

Garrus sighed. "I'm sorry Wrex, but I believe what I believe. If the krogan population exploded, the rebellions would start all over again."

"Same old shit excuses." Wrex downed the last of his drink and raised himself up from the stool. "Guess that's how you turians can live with yourselves after committing genocide."

Garrus visibly bristled. "It wasn't genocide, it-"

"Whatever." Wrex stomped to the elevator without letting Garrus finish. He'd heard it all before. He hadn't meant to turn dinner into a political discussion, of all things, but it happened. He still liked Garrus. But his instincts about him were right: a turian is a turian. Weary bitterness ate away at him as he struggled to find a reason to care. The problem was, Garrus was right. His own people were the biggest problem to their own recovery. If the Genophage ended today, chaos would reign until someone asserted dominance over Tuchanka. Once that happened, they would almost certainly declare war for retribution's sake. _Not my problem. I tried. I failed._ Wrex despaired about ever seeing a krogan future that wasn't shrouded in misery. Worst of all, he thought they deserved it.


	12. Chapter 12: Chilly Reception

**Hey everyone! I believe something went wrong with last week's upload, as the notification did not get sent out. Regardless, it is there. Hopefully this one will work correctly. We are now on Noveria! I expect this one will probably be broken up into three parts, but we will see. Enjoy!**

* * *

Noveria. A barely habitable planet outside the jurisdiction of Council space. The only type of authority from the Citadel the local bureaucracy recognized was the Spectres, and even that might not be enough to secure a landing. The planet had a notorious reputation for allowing experiments illegal elsewhere in the galaxy, and the corporations in charge would probably not be too keen on letting a Spectre investigate any part of the premises. However, this was the last lead they had on Saren, and one way or another, they would find what they needed.

Tali, Liara, and Ashley formed up behind Shepard in the airlock. Thankfully, this planet had a port, so no Mako drops would be necessary. Part of Tali was glad that Garrus was staying behind on this mission; last night's dinner still echoed sharply in her mind, especially since she rarely got much sleep anyway. _It's too quiet, all the time._ While she was starting to adjust, it was still a work in progress.

As they waited for the docking procedures to finalize, Ashley leaned close to Tali and spoke in a low voice. "Hey, you good? You seemed pretty pissed at Vakarian."

"I'm fine. Thanks for asking."

"Sure." Ashley raised her arm as if she were going to give Tali a hug. She seemed to realize what she was doing halfway through the gesture and settled for an awkward arm pat before scooting over again.

The doors opened, and the team disembarked to meet a warm welcoming party, complete with drawn weapons and angry guards. The woman at the front of the group held up a hand as they approached.

"That's close enough." Her voice was cool and collected, her tone neutral despite the show of force.

Shepard spread his arms at his side. "We aren't looking for trouble."

The woman looked over each of the squad members with an appraising eye. If she found anything interesting from her scan, she didn't show it. "This is an unscheduled arrival. I need your credentials."

"As my pilot said when we arrived, I'm a Council Spectre. If I'm not mistaken, that should allow me to come and go as I please, should it not?" Shepard was being very diplomatic, undoubtedly trying to avoid a confrontational first impression with the local authorities.

"It would, if it were true. Can you verify this claim?"

Shepard paused, looking slightly perplexed. "I can prove I am Commander Shepard, and your records should indicate that I am a Spectre from there. I didn't exactly get a badge that says Spectre on it or anything."

Another guard stepped forward, hostility radiating from her in waves. "They're being cagey. I don't trust them."

The woman in charge chewed her lip. "Sergeant Stirling, secure their weapons." Stirling, the guard who had just spoken, eagerly closed the distance to Shepard's party. Her sudden movement spooked Ashley into drawing her gun, and Tali and Liara followed suit. The uneasy meeting turned into a tense standoff, with Stirling and Shepard caught in the middle. Shepard slowly motioned for his team to lower their weapons. Ashley kept hers in her hands, but Tali and Liara stowed theirs away, causing everyone to breathe a sigh of relief.

"I'm sure we can work this out-" Shepard was cut off as a voice rang over the PA system.

"Captain Matsuo! Stand down!" Without blinking, the leader nodded at the other guards, who all holstered their guns.

"We confirmed their identity. Spectres are allowed to carry weapons here, Captain."

Matsuo gave a slight bow. "You may proceed, Spectre. We have very strict procedures here on Noveria; I hope you will forgive our caution."

"Of course. You were just doing your job, Captain." Shepard walked to Matsuo and offered his hand. "No hard feelings?" She shook it with a slight smile, then rounded up her troops and marched ahead of them to the central docking area. Stirling stared at them for longer than necessary before following the captain.

Tali bounced on her feet a little, doing something with the pent-up energy that never got used. "Pleasant people here." Ashley snorted; she still hadn't put away her gun, keeping it unhindered in case things turned foul again.

Shepard led the way up the stairs to a pair of security drones. When they passed through, the robots blared alarms, making Liara jump. She faced the sound with wide eyes and glowing hands, ready to obliterate whatever enemy decided to manifest itself.

"Don't mind the alarms. Just weapons detectors." A woman in a bright pink dress waved at them from a nearby counter. Liara sheepishly ceased using her biotics, and Shepard stepped over to the stranger.

"I am Gianna Parasini, assistant to Administrator Anoleis. We apologize for the incident in the docking bay."

"Your security seems wound rather tight." Shepard raised an eyebrow at Parasini. "Something here you guys don't want me to see?"

Parasini smirked. "This is Noveria. Everyone has their secrets, or they wouldn't need to conduct their business here. Matsuo takes her job seriously, that's all." She clasped her hands behind her back. "In any case, one of my duties here is orientation of new arrivals. Do you have any questions?"

Shepard casually glanced around to see if anyone else was nearby. "Has anyone…unusual passed through here recently?"

Parasini thought for a second. "Unusual? There was an asari matriarch that came through a few days ago. Lady Benezia."

 _That was unexpectedly helpful_. Tali looked at Liara; shock was clearly written on her face. "Benezia? She…she is here?" The asari's face had paled considerably from its normal shade of blue.

Shepard continued the conversation in an even tone. "Do you know where we might find Lady Benezia? Did she have anything, or anyone, with her?"

"Benezia left for the Peak 15 research complex soon after arriving. To my knowledge, she hasn't returned. As far as companions, she seemed to be traveling with an asari commando unit."

Shepard scratched his cheek. "So no, uh…machine units then? Did they bring cargo with them?"

Parasini shrugged. "I believe they took some containers to Peak 15, but they passed all of our inspection protocols."

"Right. So how do we get to Peak 15?"

"You'll have to speak to my boss. I'll lead you to him, he should be available for the next little while." Parasini walked around the counter and entered an elevator, waiting for them to come inside before pressing the lobby button. After a long, silent minute, the elevator finally arrived at its destination. _Does no one know how to make elevators in this entire galaxy?_

The main atrium was extremely drab and bare. The only color besides gray was the vibrant fuchsia of Parasini's dress and the endless white that showed through the giant floor to ceiling windows that made up the far wall of the room. Tali paused when they reached the windows and put a hand on the glass, marveling at the swirling flurry of ice. Even through her suit, the pane chilled her hand, indicating just how cold the outside was. She could faintly hear the howling wind as it tossed the snow around, endlessly weaving new patterns in the air. It was beautiful.

Shepard reappeared from the room the others had gone into, poking his head around the corner. He stood next to her and took in the view before glancing at her. "Got a little worried when we suddenly had one less person with us."

"Sorry…I've never seen snow before." Tali hugged herself as the cold spread up her arm, shivering slightly. "Guess I just lost myself for a second there."

Shepard reached his arm over, looking like he was going to embrace Tali. However, he put his hand on her back instead and gently guiding her into Parasini's office. "There are windows in here too." Tali would have been flustered at Shepard's touch, but she was too enraptured with the scene to notice. Ashley and Liara gave Shepard a look, which caused him to redden slightly and withdraw his hand. "She was looking at the snow."

Ashley's eyes brightened. "Have you never seen it before? That is so adorable."

"It is not," Tali grumbled under her breath.

"Snow is quite an interesting phenomenon. Water is one of the only substances that loses density when it solidifies, which allows…" Liara cleared her throat when she realized no one was listening. "Right. It is pretty."

Parasini did not remark on their conversation, patiently waiting for them at her desk. Shepard left his companions staring at the storm outside and went over to talk to her.

As soon as Shepard was out of earshot, Ashley crossed her arms and faced Tali. "What is going on between you and Skipper?"

That shook Tali out of her reverie, causing her to stumble over her words. "I don't…what…there isn't-"

"Don't say there isn't anything. Even with your mask, everyone can see you making doe eyes at him whenever he's around."

"Doe eyes? What are those?"

"I believe a doe is a type of animal on Earth, though I do not know how one would go about making their eyes." Liara frowned at the conundrum, making Ashley smack her hand into her face.

"Forget what I said. The point is, you like him, don't you?"

Tali tried to say anything to the contrary, but everything that came to mind were weak excuses that might as well have been admitting it. Finally, she hung her head and whispered a quiet "Yes." She didn't know why, but the verbal admission made her start to cry a little. She quickly turned off her mask's voice controls to hide the sounds from the others, but she couldn't do anything to stop her shaking shoulders.

Ashley was taken aback, both by the honest answer and the reaction it elicited. She looked at Liara for help, who rolled her eyes and went over to hug Tali, stroking her head in a soothing manner. Ashley scratched the back of her head awkwardly. "Hey, look, I didn't mean to upset you Tali. He obviously likes you, so I didn't think there would be any harm in asking."

Tali stopped her quiet shaking. _He what?_ She opened her communication functions again, her voice still thick with emotion. "What do you mean?" _Why did I start crying, this is so stupid._

Ashley laughed at that. "Wow, are you really that blind? You really are just like my little sister. Though I swear if this ends up like that relationship, I'll rip the Commander's balls off myself." Liara and Tali looked at her inquisitively, but she shook her head. "Long story."

Liara bent over to look Tali in the eye. "What Ashley says is true. It is apparent that Shepard has feelings for you."

 _Could he actually…?_ Tali felt like her stomach was going to burst with butterflies. _No, he's just being nice, there's no way-_

"What are you guys talking about?" Tali squeaked and banged her knee on the glass as she whipped around, wincing at the sharp pain in her leg.

"Shepard! Hi! How are you?" Tali tried to be casual and placed her back against the window, crossing her arms in the process. The cold quickly seeped in, however, causing her to jerk upright almost immediately after. Liara and Ashley tried to stifle their laughter as Shepard looked at them questioningly.

"Um…hey. I'm fine." Shepard glanced at her leg. "Is your knee okay?"

"Yep!" _How much did he hear?_ "So, uh, what did you find out?"

Shepard apparently decided to let her strange behavior go, much to her relief. "Took a moment, but we can go in and see Anoleis now. Come on." They went around the wall that made up the back of Parasini's desk space and entered a second pair of doors. A salarian sat behind two large computer screens, circulating his attention between the monitors while his hands constantly typed. He gave them a cold sneer. "You will excuse me if I don't stand up. I have no time to entertain colonial rubes." He looked pointedly at Tali. "Or vagabonds."

Shepard's jaw locked into place. _Here we go,_ Tali thought. "I'm here as a Spectre, so keep that in mind. And you got a problem with quarians?"

"With any transient population. Unreliable consumer bases. Tax-dodgers, probably." Anoleis stopped messing with his computers and folded his hands in front of him. "And believe me, your Spectre status is foremost in my mind. I will only cooperate as required by the executive board."

"Ah, he found us out. We've spent the last three hundred years evading taxes! Guess we'll just go back to Rannoch now." Tali kept her tone light to let Shepard know the salarian's words didn't bother her. She just wanted to throw in a jab.

Shepard smirked at her comment, then put his hands on Anoleis' desk. "Well, since you're being ordered to cooperate, why don't you tell me if the asari matriarch is still at Peak 15?"

"Benezia? Yes, she has not left the facility. She was here acting as Saren's executor."

Liara looked uncomfortable. "His…what?"

"Executor." Anoleis pronounced each syllable individually as if he were talking to a child. "Saren is a major shareholder in Binary Helix. Benezia is authorized to act on his name."

"Guess that confirms Councilor Tevos' idea that Benezia was the second voice in the recording." Shepard glanced at Liara before continuing. "We need to get to Peak 15."

"I am afraid that would be impossible. Peak 15 is a private property in the Skadi Mountains, and besides, there is a blizzard in the area. A common occurrence, as you can imagine."

"You're not going to be of any help, are you?"

"You have already wasted 12 credits of the company's time by keeping me locked in this meaningless exchange for the past minute. I have no reason nor inclination to help you. Good day." Anoleis began sifting through the information on his screens again, muttering about receiving important notifications.

Shepard just shrugged. "We'll find our own way, then." He turned around and exited the sparsely decorated office, entering Parasini's equally sparsely decorated office. Ashley surreptitiously used her boot to kick a hole in one of the glass frames on the door on the way out. Anoleis called out "I'll send you the bill for a replacement door," as the current door shut behind them.

Ashley grinned at Shepard. "Sorry Skipper, I couldn't resist."

He chuckled. "I should have done it myself. What an ass."

Liara stepped in front of Shepard, maintaining a very rigid, formal posture. "I imagine you want to speak with me, Shepard. About my mother."

Shepard put a hand on her shoulder. "I trust you, Liara. You're part of the team now. If you wish to sit this mission out, I won't blame you, but I don't believe you will betray us."

Liara looked down at her feet. "I…thank you, Shepard. That means a lot."

"Are you going to be okay? It can't be easy, hearing things like this about your mom."

"We haven't spoken in years. I'll be fine; I just want answers."

"Okay." Shepard nodded at her before turning to the others. "We need to find another way out of here. Let's see if we can't stir up any trouble." As they walked around the wall, Parasini waved them over to her desk.

"Anoleis isn't the only one with a pass out of Hanshan, you know."

Shepard quirked an eyebrow. "Oh?"

Parasini smiled. "You've never been in corporate before, have you Commander? You need more subtlety than strength to get what you want around here."

"Apparently so. Do you have something in mind?"

Parasini leaned in close and lowered her voice to a whisper. "Talk to Lorik Qui'in. He should be at the hotel bar, on the other side of the atrium."

Shepard copied her, leaning in and talking in an overly loud whisper. "Why are you helping us? Also why are we whispering?"

Parasini sighed, looking over her shoulder at the wall. "Can't say more, not when Anoleis could hear something."

Shepard shrugged again, something Tali figured he would be doing a lot of during their time in Hanshan. "Alright. I should go." They left her office, making their way through the lobby to the hotel. "Guess this is the trouble we were looking for."


	13. Chapter 13: Machinations

**Hey everyone! I'm sorry I didn't upload last week. I suffered an injury and couldn't write for a while, but I'm good now. I'll have to go in for surgery in a couple weeks, so I'll try and get ahead to keep the posts coming in case that puts me down for a bit. Thank you for your patience, and I hope you enjoy!**

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The atmosphere in the hotel bar was different from the rest of the port. While decorations remained sparse, a soft, jazzy piano tune played in the background, and laughter occasionally rang through the air amidst the tinkling of glasses. A lone turian sat near the edge of the room, contentedly adding another empty bottle to the collection on his table. Figuring he was a good candidate for Lorik, being the only turian in the place, Shepard started towards him only to be stopped not two steps in by an asari. She came out of the shadows and stood in their way, a sly smile on her face.

"Commander Shepard. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Shepard paused. "How do you know who I am?"

The woman chuckled lightly. "Word travels fast around here, and you're not as subtle as you think."

"That's not good, considering I don't think I'm subtle at all."

"Indeed. My name is Mallene Calis. I have a proposition for you."

Shepard let out a breath. "Okay. What is it?"

Calis retrieved a small device from a pocket, carefully keeping herself between it and the other clients. "I am a member of the Armali Council. We are trying to keep tabs on Binary Helix. From what I hear, we both have business with this particular corporation."

"Oh really? And what do you hear?"

"Doesn't matter. This device can plant a monitoring virus on their internal network, but it needs time to perform its operation. See that man at the bar?" Shepard looked, noting the only person standing at the counter and nodded. "His name is Vargas. He works for Binary Helix. All I need is for you to keep him distracted long enough for the virus to be uploaded."

Shepard crossed his arms. "Isn't this illegal?"

Calis impatiently clicked her tongue. "You're a Spectre. That makes anything legal. It'll benefit both our interests to have an inside source on Binary Helix."

"I've had some moral dilemmas in my time. This isn't one of them." Shepard jerked his head at the door. "Get out of here, before I arrest you myself. Plenty of room in the hold."

"Very well, Commander. Good day." The asari looked like she had sucked on a particularly sour lemon as she marched out of the lounge. Ashley mirrored Calis' expression, gazing at the other people in the room with venom.

"I hate this place. It's all politics, just more money involved."

Liara appeared downcast as she too surveyed the bar. "Benezia often warned me against working for businesses like these. She despised them, once. I suppose that has changed."

Shepard approached the turian, who gave them all a friendly appraisal. "Hello there! Care to join me in drowning away your troubles?" He wasn't drunk yet, but he was clearly working on it, taking another swig from a bottle that reeked of alcohol.

"Bad day, huh?" Shepard asked.

"It usually is. This time, though, there's no paycheck at the end of it." The turian gestured at the group. "What can I do for you?"

"Are you Lorik Qui'in?"

Qui'in nodded. "Indeed I am."

"We were told you might be able to help us obtain a garage pass. We need to get to Peak 15."

Qui'in drummed his fingers on the table. "I think we can come to an agreement that would be mutually beneficial." He set aside his bottle and leaned forward in his chair. "Have you met our illustrious administrator?"

Shepard crossed his arms. "You mean the dick?"

Qui'in laughed. "Take that as a yes, then. I recently compiled some information that is rather…incriminating for dear Anoleis. Somehow, he found out, and now I have been evicted from my office while his pet guards search for the evidence. If I were to, say, grant you access to my company and you found the files first…" The turian smiled. "We could deal with my Anoleis problem and your garage pass problem in one stroke."

Shepard chewed his lip. "I like the idea of sticking it to Anoleis, but I don't want to have to kill innocent guards to do so."

"Any guards taking part in this search are dirty anyway, and you don't have to kill them if you can find a way around. All we need are the files."

Tali started typing away on her omnitool. "Your computer is connected to the network here, right?"

Qui'in had an amused expression as he answered. "Yes, it is. You could try breaking through our firewalls, but I warn you, we are a paranoid bunch around here. Don't want any of our competitors seeing our secrets."

Tali scoffed. "I can hack into a geth unit, I think I can handle…" She trailed off as her initial probes fed her information about the security system. She let her arms fall back at her side. "Never mind."

Shepard looked shocked. "It's that bad?"

"I could get through it, but the program would have to run for a day or more. The levels of security this thing has is mind-blowing." She shook her head. "They ARE paranoid."

Qui'in folded his hands in front of him. "Do we have a deal?"

"I'll see what I can do," Shepard said begrudgingly.

"Excellent. Try to keep the blood of the carpet." Shepard snatched the keycard out of Qui'in's hand and walked to the exit.

"Why does everything feel so slimy here?" Tali rubbed her gloves against her legs as if she were trying to get rid of said slime.

After taking yet another elevator to Qui'in's offices, they entered a spacious main floor. The layout of the room was rather peculiar, being divided by large square sections of wall. The outside wall would normally sport a spectacular view of the landscape, though the snow obscured anything of interest currently. A set of stairs to the right led up to a second floor, and a walkway stretched along the back wall, attaching the upper level to a lone office. Unsurprisingly, the atmosphere was bleak and devoid of color. A couple of guards jerked around in surprise upon hearing the door open.

"Stop! This area is closed for investigation. Please return the way you came."

Shepard casually put a hand on the pistol at his hip. "I don't think we'll be doing that."

The guards glanced at each other. "You're the Spectre, right? Look, we can't let anyone in here. Anoleis' orders."

"Ah yes, Anoleis, the man writing your paycheck and then some." Shepard pulled his gun out and aimed at the nearest guard's head, causing them to raise their own in alarm. "I don't want to have to kill you, dirty or not. Leave now, and we won't have a problem."

For a moment, it seemed like they would open fire. However, the guard staring down Shepard's barrel shook his head and lowered his weapon. "I'm not dying for something stupid like this. Let's get out of here. We didn't see you, you didn't see us." Shepard nodded and stepped to the side, letting them pass by to the elevator.

"I appreciate your tact, Shepard. That is two less souls on our conscience." Liara smoothed the front of her outfit, pausing as her fingers touched a bloodstain that hadn't washed out. "Though I suppose we shouldn't worry about such things. It will only get worse, I'm sure."

"Just remember what's at stake. We're the good guys, Liara."

"I know." She looked Shepard in the eye. "You're right."

Shepard motioned for them to follow quietly. "Let's see if we can sneak through and avoid any more contact." They creeped to the corner where Shepard peeked his head around. Two more personnel stood about halfway down the hallway, facing the opposite direction. Shepard relayed this information to the team through hand signals and gestured for Ashley to accompany him. Together, they slowly approached the unaware guards from behind.

"…and idea what Qui'in had on Anoleis?"

"Nope. Whatever it was, he thought it was important enough to call us in. Gotta be something big."

Shepard nodded at Ashley, and they sprang into action. Shepard wrapped his arm around the man's throat and executed a triangle choke, crouching and leaning back to put more strain on his victim. Ashley, on the other hand, torqued her mark's head with a sharp twist, snapping his neck with a soft crack. She saw Shepard glaring at her around the struggling man's flailing arms and mouthed "Sorry." When the other finally stopped moving, Shepard released him, unconscious but alive.

Ashley looked ashamed. "I didn't know we were just knocking them unconscious. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, I didn't actually say anything about it. From now on, though, only kill if we have to." Tali and Liara joined them in the hallway as Shepard turned back towards the stairs. "Now, if we can just-"

A woman came into view at that moment and saw the four of them standing over the bodies. She jumped back in surprise. "Oh shi-"

Her cry was cut short as a biotic force struck her directly in the windpipe, effectively crushing it and sending her flying onto the stairs. Tali gave Liara an odd look as shouts filled the offices. Liara shrugged. "We do what we must, do we not?"

"I'm not judging you." Their conversation was cut short as chaos descended on the squad. A pair of soldiers appeared from behind them and started firing, the bullets taking chunks from their shields. Instead of returning fire, since they had no cover in the middle of the hallway, Tali quickly keyed some buttons and overloaded their communications systems, sending a painful scream through their ear pieces. As they collapsed to their knees, clutching their bleeding ears and trying to tear the offending hardware out, Tali and Liara finished them off with a few short blasts from their guns. Ashley and Shepard let out a roar and charged out of the hall, disappearing around the corner. Gunshots and thumping sounded from their direction, and Tali and Liara hurried to help their comrades. By the time they caught up, Shepard and Ashley had already floored the five remaining guards. The two soldiers grinned and gave each other a high five.

"Feels good to work with someone who fights like I do, Skipper."

"Hell yeah. No one ever expects the blind rush; gets 'em every time."

The room fell quiet, letting them know the last guards had been dealt with. The sound of their fighting would undoubtedly attract attention, so they quickly went upstairs and crossed over to the lone room. A plaque with the name Lorik Qui'in hung above the door, confirming their destination. Tali rushed over to the only computer in the room and manually connected to the tower, searching for and downloading all relevant information about Anoleis. After the sweep terminated, she gave Shepard a thumbs-up, and they traced their steps back across the bridge.

Stirling was waiting for them as they entered the cafeteria area directly in front of the stairs. Two other guards stood with her, while others were spread out throughout the bottom floor. They didn't begin firing immediately, so Shepard gave them a chance and got within speaking distance.

Stirling's face looked like it was made of stone. Her eyes were shining with a murderous light as she stared at Shepard. "I don't think you're supposed to be in here, Shepard."

The Commander raised an eyebrow. "That makes two of us."

"Anoleis would have you thrown off world for this." Stirling slowly stalked towards them. "Do you know what we did to cop killers on my world?"

Shepard smirked. "Guess it's a good thing you aren't cops, just mercenaries playing pretend."

Stirling turned purple with rage. Before she could respond, Shepard lunged forward and slammed his fist into her face, sending her reeling backwards. Liara sent a chair flying into the one on the right, while Tali and Ashley gunned down the other before he could return fire. Shepard thrust his foot into Stirling's knee, bending it backwards with a loud pop and causing her to fall to the ground. He stood over her with his pistol pointing at her head.

"You know what you're doing here is wrong. I have every legal right to deal with you as I see fit. Does this need to end in more death?"

Stirling gritted her teeth, holding back the waves of pain her leg and nose were sending to her brain. After a few seconds of glaring at Shepard, her resolve seemed to crumble. She let out a heavy breath and gingerly touched her knee, trying to assess the damage. "You're right." Shepard relaxed, and he started to straighten back up.

As the gun pointed slightly away from Stirling, her hand shot forward and grabbed Shepard's wrist. His shots hit the tile harmlessly next to Stirling, spraying dust into the air. She pulled him down next to her and buried the pistol she had hidden into his gut. "Gotcha." A bang resounded, and a hole appeared in Shepard's back, leaking thick, red blood. Tali saw the wound, and suddenly she found she couldn't hear anything. She felt herself rip Stirling away from Shepard and blow her brains out with her shotgun, but she couldn't remember telling her body to do so. She knelt down beside Shepard and tried to inspect the injury, but her mind refused to focus. "Are you…are you okay?"

Shepard looked down at his belly. His shields had been useless, as the gun was too close to be effected by them, and the bullet had passed cleanly between two slates of his armor. He applied medigel to his stomach, closing the skin and stopping the bleeding. "Did it pass through?" His face was surprisingly clear of worry or pain.

"Yes, it did."

"Good. Can someone put medigel on the exit wound?" Tali quickly complied, sealing the last visible injury with the miracle substance. Shepard got to his feet and pulled out his rifle, not looking at all troubled.

Tali was confused. "Shepard, aren't you hurt?"

"I don't feel it yet. Besides, I've had worse." He smiled at her. "We'll just visit Chakwas before heading out to Peak 15. I'll be fine."

The other guards started appearing on the stairs, causing them to take cover. Tali felt the knot in her chest slowly loosen and get replaced with relief. Ashley laughed as concrete chunks started flying from the wave of bullets. "This is what I've been missing? You've got to take me on more missions, sir."

He twisted to return fire, and a grimace appeared on his face. Sweat started pouring as he turned back to Ashley, but he grinned anyway. "Glad you're having fun." He lobbed a grenade onto the stairs, and the explosion sent blood and body parts flying. Ashley used the distraction to get up close and personal with the group of guards, turning into a tornado of punches, kicks, headbutts, and bursts from her rifle. Tali ran to the edge overlooking the stairs and rained fire down on those trying to join Ashley's fray, killing some and causing the rest to retreat. Liara created a singularity right at the bottom of the stairs, drawing in the fleeing foes and leaving them helpless. Tali threw one of her mines into the mess and crouched behind a nearby table. The screams all silenced with the ensuing detonation, but nothing came flying over the edge. Tali leaned over the railing and saw a mess of gore swirling in the dark energy. She quickly looked away from the disturbing picture, and the mini black hole soon vanished, dropping her handiwork to the ground with a sickening splat. Ashley finished the last of her opponents, grabbing him by shoulders and flinging him down the stairs, clearing the remains of Tali and Liara's mess and running into a wall. The guard hit head first and didn't move after landing.

Ashley put away her gun and spit some blood out from where one of the guards had gotten in a lucky punch. Her smile looked ghoulish, her teeth stained with red and her hair coming loose from its tight bun. "Fuck yeah."

As they went down the stairs, they all paused for a moment to look at the conglomeration of organs, viscera, and armor at the base. Ashley glanced at Tali and Liara. "That...was awesome."

"That's one word for it." Tali carefully jumped the pile and didn't look back as she walked to the exit. As they got into the elevator, Shepard clutched at his side and frowned again. "Are you sure you'll be alright?" Tali asked as she lightly brushed his arm with her hand.

"Yes. The adrenaline is wearing off, that's all." He nudged her with his shoulder. "You worry too much." Tali didn't say anything, stepping back to her place on the right. She knew Ashley was giving her a look, but she didn't bother to respond in kind.

When the doors opened, Parasini was standing outside waiting for them. Shepard approached her, still holding his stomach. "Somehow I knew you would show up."

Parasini feigned surprise. "Commander, I received reports of noise complaints from Synthetic Insights. Would you know anything about that?"

"I don't have time for coyness. You know exactly what's going on, don't you?"

Parasini gave him a half smile. "Have to keep up appearances, yes?" She looked around at the various cameras placed in the hall. "Meet me in the hotel bar for a drink, before you talk to Qui'in. I'll be waiting." She walked off before he could reply.

Shepard sighed. "Let's go see what she wants."

"Shouldn't we get you checked out first?" Tali interjected. "She can wait for a little while at least."

"Who knows how long it will be before Anoleis realizes we have Qui'in's information, if he doesn't already know. We need to handle this now. Plus, like I've already said twice now, I'm fine."

Tali tapped his stomach, drawing a pained gasp from Shepard. "Sure you are."

"Tali." The warning in Shepard's voice told her to drop it. Reluctantly, she obeyed, and they proceeded to the bar to, hopefully, obtain a garage pass at last.

They saw the bright pink dress standing alone drinking something stronger than one should drink while working. She greeted them with a nod. Her demeanor had changed completely. The simpering secretary had been replaced with a hard eyed, no nonsense visage.

"Sorry for the bullshit. Allow me to reintroduce myself. Parasini, Noveria Internal Affairs."

"What?" Shepard's response was slow and confused. Tali was worried the bullet had clipped something important; they needed to see Chakwas as soon as possible.

Parasini noted him holding his side. "Looks like you have other things to worry about, so I'll make it quick. The executive board knows about Anoleis' corruption. I've been undercover for six months trying to nail him. I want you to convince Qui'in to testify to the board against Anoleis. With that scumbag gone, this planet can run profitably again."

"Will you give me a garage pass after?"

"Help me take this guy down, and I'll get you one. Favor for a favor."

"I could just give Qui'in the evidence and get my pass now."

Parasini frowned. "Qui'in won't do anything with it other than use it to keep his own hide safe. If he testifies, however, Anoleis can be put away forever."

"It would be better to attack the root of the problem," Liara added.

"Okay. Be right back."

"Actually, I need to get back to-"

Shepard pointed a finger at her. "Stay here. I'll be right back, and I don't have the energy to chase you down at your desk." He turned and shuffled off to Qui'in's table. Qui'in seemed slightly surprised at Shepard's beleaguered movements, but ignored them and got straight to business.

"Always a pleasure, Spectre. I take it the matter I asked you to look into has been dealt with?"

"The job's done. Noveria Internal Affairs wants you to testify against Anoleis, though."

Qui'in's expression darkened. "Now that you have my property, you want to dictate how I use it? I want to avoid a public spectacle."

Shepard collected himself, trying to summon his normal charisma. "Qui'in, you'd be a hero. You'd take down the corrupt administrator that everyone hates. Wouldn't you rather him be gone entirely instead of constantly worrying if he'll outplay you sometime in the future?"

Qui'in weighed Shepard's words for a few seconds. "I have no interest in being a hero, but I see your point. Very well. Make whatever arrangements you need with your contact. I'll be waiting here."

Shepard nodded. "Thank you." He went back across the room, making a beeline for Parasini. She rolled her eyes as he came up to her.

"Well, so much for my cover."

"You won't need it anymore. He'll play ball."

"Really? That's a world of stress off my back. I'll take the evidence for safe keeping." Shepard handed it over. "Thanks. I didn't think you'd help me, being a Spectre and all. Guess some of you are alright."

"Don't tell anyone," Shepard said with a chuckle. "There's a reputation to uphold, you know."

Parasini laughed as well. "Sorry if I came off a little harsh. I am grateful." She pulled a card from her purse and gave it to Shepard. "Here is your garage pass. Had it made just in case."

She popped a few knuckles, a satisfied smirk on her face. "Now, I have an arrest to make. Too bad I can't change into something more comfortable. I hate these things. Want to watch?"

"Hell yeah."

"But Shepard-"

"It's on the way. I'm good." Tali knew there was no point arguing. They followed Parasini to the main lobby and waited while she disappeared into Anoleis' office. A minute later, they burst out of the doors, Anoleis' hands tied behind his back.

"This is an outrage! I'll see that you never work in this sector again!" Anoleis made an attempt to wriggle free, but he might as well have been pulling against a steel bar.

"Yeah, yeah, get a move on." Parasini pushed his head down and led him towards the party. Anoleis saw them standing there and made a desperate attempt to escape his plight.

"You! Shepard! I demand that you place this bitch under arrest!" Shepard looked over at Ashley and gestured at the struggling salarian.

"You want to do the honors?"

Ashley stepped forward and socked Anoleis in the stomach, bending him over and silencing his protests. Parasini looked pleased. "Thanks. I'm not allowed to do that, and the idiot wouldn't shut up." She pulled him away, heading to another part of the building. "See you around the galaxy Commander. I owe you a beer."

"I'll hold you to that." Shepard watched the pair walk off, happy to see his efforts rewarded with a pleasant ending. "Okay, a quick stop at the Normandy, then we head for Peak 15."

Liara looked at Tali for a second before focusing back on Shepard. "What if your injury turns out to be serious, Commander?"

Shepard shrugged. "Then I'll deal with it. We can't let this lead escape us. Every second we waste is another second Benezia could get away."

"If we lose you, the search will be stopped entirely." Tali folded her arms across her chest. "I'm just saying you should be careful. And listen to the doctor."

"Fair enough." Shepard rolled his eyes as they started walking back to the ship. "With the way you two worry, maybe I should bring Garrus and Wrex instead." He saw them about to argue and held up a hand. "I'm kidding. Let's see what Chakwas can do."


	14. Chapter 14: Monsters in the Snow

**Hey everyone! The story has officially received over 10,000 views; that is insane! I'm so glad you guys are enjoying it, because I love to write it. I really wanted to finish Noveria in three chapters, but it looks like it'll be taking four. I apologize for those of you who are tired of this frozen wasteland, but I'll try to make it entertaining while we are here!** **Hopefully uploads will become regular again after this week. Thank you for all the support!**

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"Shepard, I have to insist that you remain here for the time being."

"No."

"But-"

"No, Doctor. You said it yourself, you fixed everything."

"I said I fixed everything I could find. Without a full, proper examination, there is no way to tell if the bullet caused damage to other organs. You could bleed out, or infection could set in from a perforated intestine, or any number of other things could happen."

Shepard crossed his arms. "Okay, give me your honest opinion. What is the likelihood that such a scenario will occur?"

Chakwas looked annoyed. "There is no way to accurately represent such a figure."

"You saw the path the bullet took, you patched up the things it hit along the way. Surely you could give an estimate based on that?"

She thought for a second. "It is low, I will admit, but that does not mean-"

Shepard cut her off again. "Then I have to go. The mission comes first."

Chakwas sighed. "I will record that I advised against this plan. Make sure not to do any sudden twists, as that may rupture the injury to your liver again."

Shepard grinned. "Yes ma'am. Sorry to be such trouble."

Chakwas gave him a stern look. "Just come back alive, Commander. I'd rather not have your death on my conscience."

"Sure thing." He nodded to her and left the medbay. Chakwas sighed again as she started cleaning the operating table. After her many years of serving on military vessels, she had come to view the crew as a sort of family. It pushed her to learn all that she could about her profession to keep them safe, including brushing up on alien physiology for their newest members. She loved the life, and she would never trade it for anything else. She hated the waiting, however, the morbid anticipation that one of them would come back and she would be powerless to help them. Like Jenkins.

She shook the dark thoughts from her mind as she put away the last scalpel, her area once again prepared to receive another patient. _He'll make it back. And I'll be here, ready to fix him when he does._

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The guard waved them through when they showed their hard-earned garage pass. Tali blinked a couple times as her eyes adjusted to the brightness of the garage, the snow lighting up the room through the open exit. When they focused after a couple of seconds, she felt her heart drop. _Of course._ The only vehicle in the entire hangar was none other than an M-34 Mako.

Shepard glanced around, a mischievous look on his face. "Seems like we only have one choice. Oh well." He eagerly hopped into the tank and drummed his fingers on the steering wheel with all the excitement of a child receiving a new toy. "Come on, let's take her for a spin!"

Ashley shared Shepard's enthusiasm, quickly clambering into the gunner's seat. Tali trudged over to the passenger's side and put her hand on the door at the same time as Liara. She looked at the asari with a confused expression. Liara shuffled her feet. "I was thinking, since you always sit in the passenger's seat, it might be my turn…"

"Oh. Right. Shotgun." And with that, Tali opened the door and sat next to Shepard. Liara got in the back a few seconds later looking disgruntled.

"What does your shotgun have to do with anything?"

"It's a human expression for claiming the seat next to the driver. If you say shotgun first, you get to sit there. I think." Shepard nodded in confirmation.

"I'm afraid she's right, Liara. If she called shotgun, she gets the seat."

Tali turned around and saw how sad Liara looked and couldn't help but smile. "You can ride up here on the way back, okay?"

Liara smiled back gratefully. "Thank you. I do not think my digestion could handle two trips in the backseat."

"Is it really so bad back there?"

Liara's eyes took on a haunted light. "You have no idea."

Shepard fired up the engine, and they sped out into the cold blizzard. Through the snow, huge peaks loomed like shadowy giants in the background, and dark stains in between marked the presence of seemingly bottomless chasms. Even through the various layers of metal they could hear the wind whistling around the Mako, almost lifting the vehicle off the ground at some points. Visibility was restricted to a couple hundred feet, which wasn't nearly as bad as Tali had expected. The path itself was extremely narrow, etched into the side of a mountain chain that dropped off sharply into an abyss on the left.

They trundled forward uneventfully, following the line of beacons that marked the path to their destination. Tali performed her routine scans as they traveled, always preferring to be safe than sorry. About half an hour in, her sensors picked up on something obscuring the road ahead. The closest appeared to be a crashed shuttle of some sort, still emitting signals from its nonfunctional corpse. And slightly beyond that…

"Shepard, there's geth up ahead."

Surprise was not an emotion anyone felt in the tank; it would have been more surprising if they hadn't encountered any of the Reaper-worshipping robots. "How many?"

Tali's brow furrowed as she concentrated on interpreting the data. "It looks like a couple of defense towers, mixed with maybe eight or so ground units."

Shepard barked out a short laugh. "You're telling me they snuck giant, sentient turrets through customs? And they had a problem with us carrying guns?"

"We did end up using those guns to kill some of their security."

"Fair point. But still: Giant. Turrets." Shepard held his hands apart to emphasize the large dimensions of the enemy, causing Liara to yelp with fear as the Mako drifted near the drop. Tali only felt a tiny flicker of anxiety before he regained control of the vehicle; she had come to expect such antics during his driving.

"Targets in sight," Ashley called down, firing her first rocket before the towers could react. Shepard jumped straight over the charred remains of the transport vessel, no doubt another victim of the geth, closing the distance to the fortifications. The infantry ducked behind their mobile shields and peppered the Mako with gunfire; fortunately, they were as effective as gnats biting at a charging bear. He easily maneuvered away from the turrets' retaliatory missiles, and the cannon roared to life once more, sending one of the automated defenses tumbling down the hill in a burning heap. With not much else to do but hold on tight, Tali overrode one of the ground troops as she bounced around in her restraints. She grinned in malicious satisfaction as her traitor caused havoc in the geth ranks. By the time the other machines finished him off, the other turret had gone down in flames. The geth tried to retreat, but the Mako flew up the ramp and crunched through shields and robots alike, with Ashley cleaning up any stragglers the charge left alive.

They ran across similar encampments during the ride, and most of them went the way of the first. At one point, a rocket blast coupled with a particularly strong wind gust blew them over the gorge; loud screaming ensued from everyone, Shepard included. Tali overcharged the thrusters right as Shepard boosted, allowing them to clear the gap and end up on the other side. They collided with the mountain a good thirty feet above the path and unceremoniously skidded down the snowy side, coming to a halt no more than two feet from the drop they had just avoided. Tali's throat felt scratchy from the force of her scream as she cleared it to speak. "I might have been a little overzealous."

Shepard laughed as he drove them away from the brink. "I'm just happy to still be up here."

After what felt like an eternity, a large structure slowly materialized out of the dim haze. A fellow Mako sat waiting to greet them at the entrance, overturned and aflame and effectively blocking vehicle access to the facility. A small side door remained unobstructed, and after Shepard reluctantly parked the Mako, they climbed out and assembled before it. Tali took a moment to wonder at the snow crunching beneath her feet and gazed as little flakes fell on her mask and melted into tiny streams of water. _It's beautiful._ She cupped her hands and let them fill up with flecks of ice, glistening even in the dim light. _What would they feel like?_

As a quarian, she knew there were many things she would never get to experience that other races took for granted. But seeing the majesty of nature wrapped in all of its wintery splendor left her yearning for new sensations. Locked away in the Fleet, suit life was simply another part of a reality that faded into the background. You focused on helping your family, your shipmates, keeping the Fleet alive. Everyone shared the same burdens, including weak immune systems, which pushed any thoughts of self-pity far from her mind. Now… _Damn this Pilgrimage._

She shivered involuntarily, suddenly realizing just how cold it was. The others were hugging themselves and chattering their teeth, and even through her helmet, Ashley's nose and cheeks were shining a bright red. _I guess there are some benefits to environmental suits._

Shepard pushed the button on the side, which caused a red flash and nothing else. He looked at Tali. "C-c-can you g-get this open b-b-before we freeze?" Tali uploaded her override and had the door open less than a second later, and the team gratefully huddled into the building. The steel corridor boasted a utilitarian design, much like Port Hanshan, and the door at the end presumably connected them to the main garage. Tali readied her shotgun and formed up behind Shepard as he and Ashley opened it and strode into the next room. An angry warble rang out, and an explosion sent the two soldiers flying away from Tali and Liara.

"Son of a bitch!" Shepard helped Ashley to her feet and they scrambled for cover behind an old Grizzly. Tali blasted a stalker that hopped down directly in front of her before it could realize its mistake and left the hallway, crouching and moving along the wall. She glanced behind her and saw Liara find shelter near Shepard and Ashley, her biotics flaring to life. She continued her trek until the line of shelving ended, placing her behind the majority of the geth units. Her pulse rose when it appeared none of the robots had noticed her yet, the anticipation making her hands quiver. _Steady, Tali. Remember what Father always said. Breathe slow, keep a calm head, always have a plan._ She had relished the time she spent training with her father; it was the only time they spent together after her mother died.

Tali counted 5 assault units, 2 snipers, 2 rocket troops, and another stalker. The closest geth would see her the moment she left cover; she would need to take it out first. She primed a mine and sent it hovering over to the other side of the room. A second later, one of the snipers fell to the floor twitching as waves of electricity racked its body. Most of the units focused their attention on that section, scanning for the new threat. Tali used this opportunity to leap forward and turn the assault unit's head into a mangled mess. She slid over the boxes it had been using and used them herself. She knew they geth were connected over a network, but she hoped her quick assassination had terminated the flow of information before it sent an alert to the others. She heard the thrum of biotic energy and watched as a geth arm soared over her head.

She hacked into one of the rocket troops, causing it to take out two of its comrades in a single blow. As the others turned to address this new threat, she surged out and blasted away the other rocket trooper. Its friend turned toward her, but she jumped up and drove both of her powerful legs into its chest, sending it falling over some crates. She reloaded as she stood up and placed two shots into the unit before it could recover. By this point, only a handful of geth remained, and Tali played the rest of the battle safe, shooting every now and then to draw the attention of the geth but otherwise letting the others clean up the remnants. The last unit fell under the combined barrage of Shepard and Ashley's guns, and Tali surveyed the destruction with approval. _Geth bosh'tets._

Now that they were out of combat, she noticed an alarm was playing in the background. "User alert. All Peak 15 facilities have suffered a great deal of damage. Biohazard materials present through facility. VI user interface offline."

Tali accessed what information she could about the structure from the partially functioning internal network. "I think we'll need to get the reactors working again if we want to travel to the heart of this place."

Liara frowned. "Biohazard materials? I wonder what they were doing here."

"I am sure we will find out," Shepard said. "I'm guessing the geth didn't attack this place, considering Saren is working with them."

Ashley nudged a geth body with her foot absentmindedly. "You think that's why Benezia was called in?"

"That would make sense." Shepard shouldered his rifle while he looked around the room. "Let's move on. Do you know where the reactors are?"

Tali pointed. "Through that door, there will be an elevator that way I believe."

They passed a couple of nonfunctional sentry turrets, though they were pointed towards the middle of the facility instead of the exit. Tali shared a concerned glance with Liara, but continued forward without saying anything. The elevator ascended for a long time before coming to a halt and opening to a hall built into the rock. The only manmade section was the doors inserted at either end, and the temperature dropped to uncomfortably cold once again.

Tali led them through the door and walked straight into a krogan battlemaster. They both blinked at each other in surprise, neither consciously registering the other's sudden existence. The krogan regained his senses first and backhanded her off to the side with a roar. Her hip collided with the stone wall, and her ears rang with a loud whistling sound. She tried to stand up, but her head was swimming too much, and she sat back down hard. Blearily, she saw Shepard, face full of savage fury, pouring bullets into the krogan's skull. Sounds of fighting echoed distantly around her, and she forced herself out of her dazed stupor. _Come on, get up. Get. Up._

The world came crashing back with crisp clarity, along with the almost crippling pain in her side. Grunting, she staggered to her feet and blasted away a geth who had apparently considered her out for the count. Another krogan saw Tali rise and started charging for her. _This is not good._ She almost laughed at her own understatement.

The krogan was maybe fifteen feet away when a loud screech shattered the air. A monstrous conglomeration of tentacles, legs, and pincers erupted from a vent and latched on to the krogan. Tali watched with mixed revulsion and relief as the krogan was dragged into the vent, screaming as the tentacles punctured him again and again. A shiver ran down her back and made her hair stand on end. She knew it couldn't be a spider; the thing was huge. Still…it looked an awful lot like a mutant spider…

Several small screes resounded around the room as a dozen or so little versions of the monster from earlier came from the floor, the ceiling, and the walls and advanced on the fighting figures. Tali felt her throat seize up. _No no no no no…_

"S-sp-spiders! Shepard, there are SPIDERS!" She sprayed wildly, targeting whichever one of the little devils was closest until it vanished in a gooey pop. They were relatively easy to dispatch, thankfully; the big ones were another matter.

Tali saw one jump from the ceiling and land directly on Ashley. The woman grabbed the tentacles that were trying to impale her, locking them in an impasse. The spider-thing screamed in Ashley's face in frustration, dripping slime onto her skin. Ashley screamed right back, though her voice was full of rage rather than fear. Liara put the thing into a stasis field, allowing Shepard and Tali to blow it apart, though it took a decent amount of ammunition to do so. Ashley heaved the corpse off of her and stood, wiping the gunk from her cheeks.

Another monster burst out of a vent and grappled Ashley from behind, sending her crashing back down to the floor. "Fucking piece of shit-" Ashley used the momentum to continue rolling, flipping the thing onto its back. She turned around and sank her armored hand deep into its exposed underbelly, grabbing a fistful of intestines and ripping them out. She continued to do this until the thing stopped squirming. Ashley took a little longer to stand this time, and her hair had completely lost its original shape.

"If one more, whatever the fuck those are, tries to fucking eat me again, I'm going to fucking lose it." Ashley spit some blood on to the floor. "Fuck."

"Do you think those are the 'biohazard materials?'" Liara examined the body without a hint of disgust, her face alight with interest. "I have never seen this species before."

Shepard walked over to Tali, concern written on his face. "Anything broken? You took a pretty bad hit."

Tali rotated her leg around; it throbbed, but her movement was not restricted. "I think I'm good."

"I'm fine, by the way, thanks for asking," Ashley called out. "Just mauled by two monsters, you know."

Shepard rolled his eyes. "Did they scare you, Ash? Need me to hold your hand?" She flipped him the bird, making them both laugh. He turned back to Tali and gave her a friendly nudge. "You scared me there for a second."

Tali scoffed. "What was that you said to me earlier? You worry too much." She looked at Liara digging through Ashley's eviscerated foe and almost hurled right in her mask. "Ugh, what are those things?"

Liara straightened, her clothes smeared with slime, though she didn't seem to notice. "I have no idea. I suspect we may find the answers deeper in."

Shepard cocked his rifle. "Let's go find out then, shall we?"


	15. Chapter 15: Spiders and Flies

**Hey everyone! The surgery went well, and I should be completely recovered soon, so on time uploads are on the horizon! I would like say thank you to all of you for reading this and for letting me know what you think about the story. In particular, Aftermath212, Blaze1992, Janizary, and Leaf Ranger, you all have been extremely consistent with your reviews, and I very much appreciate your input. You guys are the best. Now, on with the tale!**

* * *

"Rachni." Shepard looked at the rest of his crew, shock written on all of their faces. Tali shook her head. _That was unexpected._ The scientist's story of how Binary Helix had found a derelict ship and hatched an egg thousands of years old that just happened to be a queen and proceeded to create an out of control army of monsters sounded like something out of a sci-fi flick.

The man's heavy Russian accent interrupted her thoughts. "They must be euthanized, I am thinking. It is sad, but it must be done. A neutron purge should do the trick."

Liara looked physically hurt by his words. "Surely there is something we can do to save them? This is a species thought long extinct suddenly resurrected; can we justify destroying them once again?"

The man looked slightly irritated. "Like I said earlier, the queen is elsewhere. These here are rabid, they must be put down."

Shepard leaned in close to the scientist, using his normal Shepard charm to gaze into the man's soul. "And you're sure you haven't seen an asari matriarch come through here?"

The man's irritation was replaced with a little fear, and his tone became placating. "I tell you the truth, there have been no asari. I am the last one in this part of the facility."

Ashley frowned. "I don't like it. Think Ventralis set us up?"

Shepard chewed his lip, as he often did. "It's possible. He might be working for Benezia. We should expect resistance when we return."

"He did seem a little suspicious while we were talking to him," Tali agreed.

"Benezia is safe then. At Rift Station." Tali looked pityingly at Liara; she couldn't imagine being in the asari's position and having to hunt her own mother. Shepard turned back to their guest.

"So, how do we set off the purge?"

He gestured to the door behind him. "Through there, all you have to do is insert the key into the arming controls. Then I can give the VI the code-" He was cut off abruptly as a claw burst through his chest, further adding to the filth and grime that coated the team. The man stared down in surprise at this new growth in his body and clutched feebly at the protrusion as his body was lifted off the floor. The light left his eyes, and the rachni tossed him aside like a ragdoll. Tali felt an almost unnatural fury rise in her chest as they gunned down the giant spider with little effort. She had no particular affection for the nameless scientist, but she had seen these mindless killers extinguish one too many lives today. Her nerves were shot, and she just wanted to be away from this nightmare of rachni and corpses. Growling, she took out some of her frustration on the rachni soldier's body, kicking it and moving it a fair distance considering its size. She ignored the looks from the others and silently went into the adjacent room to inspect the arming controls.

After looking over the system for a couple of seconds, it seemed to be a fairly straightforward procedure; like the scientist had said, they simply needed a key and a code sequence. Unfortunately, he had died before he could give them the verbal command. _Maybe it's stored somewhere on a local file?_ She started searching the computer for relevant information.

Shepard walked through the door, carrying a card and a slip of paper. "Turns out he had the code written down in his pocket. Rather convenient." His smile faded as he approached Tali, resting against the wall as he reached her. His armor was marked with an assortment of scrapes and indents from bullets and pincers, and blood caked most of his body and half of his face. Tali herself was covered in dust, gore, slime, and scratches as well; what a lovely pair they made. "How are you doing?" he asked her.

"I'm fine, just…tired. Ready to be done with this place." She placed her head in her hands, wishing she could rub her temples. Liara came in with Ashley; Tali noticed that at some point the asari's left pant leg had been torn off from the knee down, and Ashley was almost unrecognizable under the amount of viscera that coated her from head to toe. Shepard squeezed her shoulder lightly.

"We're almost done. I think." He gave her the key, which she inserted into the machine. The VI powered up and asked for a confirmation code, warning of the impending danger should they proceed. Tali stood up and joined the other two by the door, returning Shepard's nod as he repeated the code.

"Verified. Code Omega execution in 120 seconds." Instantly, a loud commotion came from the direction of the elevator. A chorus of screams chilled Tali to the bone, crawling their way up the back of her neck and sinking themselves in her brain. _Guess they know what's happening._

Shepard had a look of dread on his face as he opened the door, leading the way back into the main room. In between them and the exit, dozens of rachni skittered around, scratching at the walls, the floor, the ceiling, trying to find some way to escape the blast. Upon seeing the humanoids, they turned and flung themselves at the squad with reckless abandon. Chaos ensued as waves upon waves of the creatures poured at them from every direction; it took everything they had just to hold them off. Somehow, they were making slow but steady progress to the elevator. After only thirty seconds, they had already made it to the doors. _That wasn't as bad as it could have been._

A tentacle curled around her foot and yanked her away from the team, dragging her over to one of the walls. "TALI!" Shepard leapt after her and grabbed her outstretched hand, keeping her from being pulled down into the vent shafts. She held onto him with all of her might, but another rachni soldier barreled into Shepard, pinning him against the floor and ripping their hands apart. As Tali screamed, the rachni pulled her into the relative darkness of the metal tunnels. She felt a sharp, stabbing pain in her leg, and she was sure her suit had been punctured. Her shotgun wouldn't point down her body, so she quickly pulled out her pistol and emptied as many bullets as she could down the dark shaft while being yanked farther from safety. She heard a scree, and the pressure on her foot released.

Relieved, she faced the way she came, hoping to get back to the others, but she saw several rachni charging through the vent straight at her. She had no choice but to half crawl as fast as she could in the other direction, firing at her pursuers to slow their charge. Panic started to set in; she only had a minute to escape the neutron purge now, and her access to the elevator was cut off. _I have to find another way out NOW._ Tali threw a mine up the vent, blowing up the closest rachni and effectively blocking any more from coming after her. The explosion had busted a hole into a nearby room, though the breach wasn't big enough for her to fit through. It gave her an idea, though.

She pulled up a map of the facility and found her location within the vents. The breach had cut her off from the room she came from, having exploded right at the corner. _Okay, um…plan B._ She moved a dozen feet or so farther down the vent and took a right, stopping when her beeping dot matched her desired destination. _Now, how many mines to use…no time, use all of them._

The detonation ripped a giant tear in the lining, cutting through the steel like a hot knife through butter. Tali felt the heat singe her hood, but luckily the cloth did not catch fire. The opening led directly to the elevator shaft. As she crawled to it, she found herself within arms' reach of the bottom of the elevator, but there was no apparent hatch that would allow her to get inside. "Damn it!" She flexed her fingers a couple of times, loosening them up for their next adventure. _At least the elevators go slowly._

She heard Shepard's voice come in over the radio, static ridden and barely intelligible. "Tal…you there? We…wenty second…"

"Shepard? Can you hear me? I'm under the elevator."

"…what? Repea…"

"Shepard?" The radio turned into pure crackling; maybe the system purge was affecting it. Either way, she needed to grab on before it left. Her fingers latched onto a couple of handholds, making sure to stay as far away from any moving parts as she could. She slowly scooted her feet out of the hole until they dangled helplessly below her, stretching down into the darkness. _Keelah, I'm going to die._

She felt herself begin to rise as the box begrudgingly groaned its way up the shaft. The jerking motion strained her arms, threatening to loosen her grip and send her plummeting into the gaping maw of blackness. She was glad that no matter how sweaty her palms got her gloves would maintain their texture, giving her an easier time with the ascent. A low hum started resonating through the air, strong enough to add a slight vibration to the elevator. She looked down and saw a brilliant flash of light cascade into the elevator shaft, enveloping the area they had just vacated. The walls and cables appeared to be unaffected, making it seem as though a harmless lightshow was on display, but Tali knew that any living thing caught in the aura would be instantly neutralized. The glow expanded in the tunnel, and Tali instinctively brought her knees to her chest, putting as much distance between herself and the death cloud as possible. It stopped far short of her, however, and slowly dissipated into nothingness. She breathed a sigh of relief.

After another half minute of helpless hanging, the elevator screeched to a halt. She gratefully found purchase on the wall with her feet, giving her arms a much needed break. _Now, how do I get out of this._ As she scanned her surroundings for ideas, she noticed that she was lined up with the entrance to another floor almost perfectly. She carefully maneuvered her way over to the doors and dropped to the ledge; she almost lost her balance upon landing, but her hands shot out and grabbed at the sides, bracing her body. After she pulled herself in, she jammed her fingers into the crack and forced the doors open, wedging in between the metal slides and pushing through with a final burst of energy.

She laid on her back where she fell after stumbling in, staring up at the ceiling. _I'm alive._ She started laughing, beginning with full-bellied booms and ending in breathless squeaks as she reveled in her escape. Even though her muscles ached from the day's exertions, she found herself reinvigorated by the pure joy of drawing another breath. "That was ridiculously awesome," she said to the empty room, raising her head up to look at the elevator doors. She suddenly remembered that the rest of her team didn't know she was alive; in fact, they were probably convinced she was dead. She quickly opened their communications channel.

"Hello? This is Tali, come in." Static was her only answer. She frowned; even if the purge had somehow interfered with the radio, she doubted it would still be in effect afterwards.

"This is Tali'Zorah, is anyone there?" _Why did you use your full name, they know who you are._ Still no reply. She checked her radio's diagnostics; everything seemed to be working fine. As she continued to scan for problems, she found an anomaly that appeared to be emitting a signal, effectively blocking all radio chatter in the area. The source was centered on Ventralis' office. "Bosh'tet," she growled; this confirmed their suspicions that he had betrayed them.

She pressed the elevator button, hoping to catch her friends before they got too far. An obnoxious tone rang out, and a sign glowed into the existence above the door. Out of order.

"Seriously?" She pressed it a couple more times in frustration before kicking the doors and turning around. _I'll have to find another way up._ She displayed her map of the facility on her omnitool and made her way forward, taking care to keep as quiet as possible while she did. Even though they had eliminated the main nest, she assumed there would be scattered remnants of rachni throughout Peak 15, as well as the presence of apparently hostile security forces. She figured the best plan, since she was alone, was to remain undetected.

She only had two encounters with other lifeforms during her exploration; once, she hid in a dark alcove as a six person squad ran by her, talking about intruders in the upper levels. The other time, the only warning she got was a small hiss as she was thrown into a wall by a biotic wave. She spun around on the ground and unloaded into the rachni, halting its charge inches from her outstretched leg. As she slowly got back to her feet, she remembered the scratch she had received in the vents and inspected the injury on her thigh. From what she could tell, her suit had performed all of its fail-safes correctly, sealing off the exposed area and dousing the injury in antibiotics. The mesh of her suit had formed a new barrier, closing in on itself from the outside world, but she would need to properly treat and clean the area once they returned. However, she doubted the puncture would be life-threatening, though every break always ran the risk. Hopefully, she would just get a minor headache and move on.

Eventually, Tali found a set of stairs that led her to a part of the facility marked as the Secure Lab. As she turned the corner, she saw a group of asari commandos standing at the far door. They didn't notice her and appeared to be waiting for some sort of signal. _They must be working for Benezia._ Tali opened her omnitool and focused on preparing as many attacks as possible while they stood there unaware. When she had gained access to all of their guns and shields, she snuck as close to them as she could before the nearest one whipped around in surprise. Tali unleashed her hacks all at the same time, and the three asari immediately fell to the ground in a flurry of sparks as their shields and guns overloaded at the same time, sending electricity surging through their bodies. When one of them groaned and tried to sit up, Tali hit them with the butt of her shotgun, knocking her out cold. She didn't want to alert anyone else to her presence, but she didn't want to stab three helpless people to death either, so she left them in their unconscious states and crept into the next room.

A small walkway was attached to the perimeter of the chamber, hanging suspended far above the bottom. Many large crates cluttered the path, and the room smelled sterilized, a scent Tali was all too familiar with. A large tank was in the middle, with windows allowing one to see the contents: a giant version of the rachni monsters they had been fighting. _I'm guessing that's the queen._ An asari, dressed in all black and wearing some sort of helmet crown, stood before the queen, gazing intently at the creature. The rachni was savagely biting at the glass where her hand rested, but the asari didn't seem to mind, staring through it as though her thoughts were a million miles away. _And I bet that's Matriarch Benezia._

Tali knelt down behind one of the crates and considered her options. She doubted attacking the matriarch on her own would be a smart idea; the woman had almost a thousand years of experience. Maybe the others would make their way to her location eventually. She couldn't exit the room through any of the other doors without being spotted, and she knew the path behind her only led away from her friends.

Just as she started to get comfortable, one of the entrances opened, and she saw Shepard stride into the room. His face looked like it was made of stone, but his eyes flashed with furious thunder. His mouth twisted into a snarl when he saw Benezia, but she started speaking before he could say anything, not even turning to look at the intruders.

"You do not know the privilege of being a mother. There is a power in creation. To shape a life…"

While Benezia spouted her monologue, Tali surreptitiously tried to get someone's attention. When her waves went unnoticed, she lit her omnitool up and flashed it in their direction, careful to keep it down and out of sight of Benezia. Ashley glanced over, and her eyes widened in disbelief. Tali gave her a wave, and Ashley leaned over Shepard's shoulder and whispered in his ear. He stiffened, his lips parting as he took a small gasp. Benezia frowned, and Shepard locked eyes with her, regaining his composure. There was a visible change in his posture, however; gone was the slouch of defeat and the rigid muscles coursing with anger. Instead, he stood tall as he listened to the asari, and his eyes lost their hooded appearance, shining with joy instead of despair.

Satisfied that they were aware of her presence, Tali used them as a distraction to slowly make her way around the room behind the matriarch.

* * *

"TALI!" Shepard cried, seeing the young quarian getting dragged away from them. He felt his throat tighten in fear as he jumped forward, snatching her hand just before she was pulled beyond saving. However, she was ripped from his grasp as a giant spider wrestled him away. He heard Tali scream as she vanished from sight, and his entire body went cold. A tentacle claw pierced into his shoulder, but he barely noticed, sinking his armored arm deep into the thing's throat and tearing out whatever he could grab. As it staggered back, he finished it off with a spray of bullets. He frantically turned back to where Tali had disappeared, and he heard gunshots coming from the hole. _She's still alive_. "TALI! CAN YOU HEAR ME?" The encroaching horde kept from reaching the vent, but an explosion resounded from it, and a small opening appeared at the far end of the room. Shepard was forced back to the elevator, holding off the right flank with a hail of gunfire and the occasional kick as Liara and Ashley kept the rest at bay.

"How much time do we have left?" Shepard asked, shredding another rachni.

Liara glanced at her omnitool between biotic attacks. "Sixty seconds Shepard. We should leave by no later than ten, or we won't escape." She grimaced at her own words, noting the sharp looks that both Shepard and Ashley gave her.

"We leave no one behind," Ashley said vehemently.

"I did not mean…I am sorry." A tear fell down Liara's face as she continued fighting. Shepard gritted his teeth. _No. I refuse to give up on her yet._

"We'll hold here for as long as we can. She can make it. She will." For the next thirty seconds, they stood their ground under an intense assault, the floor becoming slick with blood and guts. Five more seconds passed, and Shepard knew that Tali's chances were fading quickly; time was running out.

Shepard saw his omnitool and remembered his radio, quickly pressing the button. "Tali! Are you there? We only have twenty seconds until the bomb goes off."

Her voice answered him, filling him with hope. "Shepard…hear me…under the…" The connection cut out. Shepard slammed the tool in frustration.

"What? Repeat, we couldn't hear." Silence greeted him. Liara gave him a look full of sorrow and regret. This was worse than if she had simply fallen to the rachni. He had to use the elevator to save the rest of his team, but he knew that doing so sealed Tali's fate. And she was still down here alive.

"Tali…I…I'm sorry." His voice broke, and he smashed the switch that would take them to the main floor. The doors closed, and they began their slow, somewhat rickety ascent from hell. Shepard stared emptily at the wall, unable to process what had just happened. He had seen soldiers die throughout his career. He had lived through Akuze alone, while everyone else had been brutally torn to pieces. He alone of his family had made it through the batarian invasion of his colony. Surviving was something he had come to terms with a long time ago; soldiers die in wars, and he couldn't blame himself for every death. This time, though…it was Tali. It was different. He had been the reason she was in such a dangerous situation to begin with. It was entirely his fault she was here, and he had failed to bring her back. Leaving had killed her as surely as if he had put a gun to her head and pulled the trigger.

A loud bang caught his attention. Ashley rammed her foot into the wall several more times, muttering "Shit," over and over. Shepard watched her blankly, the rhythmic sounds numbing his senses. Liara simply cried silently in the back.

The void inside his soul started filling up with rage. Benezia…and Ventralis. This was their fault. And they would pay.

The next few minutes were a blur for Shepard; he didn't recall how they ended back in Ventralis' stronghold. He felt like he was in a dream as they ploughed through the Peak 15 security, not fully aware of his surroundings as they tore the guards apart. The first thing he remembered doing with crystal clarity was shooting Ventralis' hand off, effectively putting him out of the fight. After everyone else was dead, Shepard stalked over to the head of security. The man dragged himself away from Shepard, putting his good hand between him and the Commander.

"Please, I was just doing what I was told. You have to understand."

Shepard stood over Ventralis, nodding. "I understand." He pulled his knife out of its sleeve. "I just don't care." He drove the blade into the man's stump, twisting once the thrust ran out of steam. The man screamed. Instead of satisfaction, Shepard found himself feeling sick as Ventralis weakly beat at Shepard with his free hand and tried to jerk his arm off of the knife. _This isn't who I am._ The sour taste in his mouth turned bitter as the image of Tali being dragged out of sight crossed his mind. _This is what he deserves._ Shepard sunk his blade behind Ventralis' kneecap, slowly pulling until it popped out with a loud crack. "You are the reason my friend is dead." Ventralis was openly weeping now, pleading with Shepard to stop. As Ventralis quivered in pain, another image of Tali came unbidden to his mind. She was recoiling from him as he contemplated sacrificing those civilians on the asteroid in order to get revenge. He knew she would be disgusted with what he was doing to the security chief; he was too. _I am better than this._ With a snarl, he pulled the blade out and sunk it into the man's throat, ending his misery quickly.

Shepard glanced at his companions. Liara looked shaken. "You should not have done that, Shepard."

Ashley spit. "You shouldn't have stopped."

Shepard cleaned his blade and slid it into its sheath. "Come on, we still have to find Benezia."

Liara stepped forward, her posture subdued. "I think we should…you know…talk about what happened. In the hot labs."

"No," Shepard said simply. "Not now. I…just, no." His rampage through the facility became much more restrained after Ventralis' death. His rage had turned into a cold burn, making his limbs feel heavy. He kept hearing Tali's scream in his head, laden with terror. And him, helpless to save her.

He knew he cared for the quarian as more than a friend, but he doubted he would ever have confessed his feelings to her. After Saren was defeated, he would have stood by and wished her well as she returned to her Fleet, not wanting to get between her and her people. And he would have regretted it, much like he was regretting many things right now.

All of those random conversations they had during lunch, the awkward pauses when she said something flirtatious or just tripped over her words, the sound of her voice when she laughed…they would never happen again. Despite acknowledging the presence of something between himself and Tali, Shepard hadn't realized the depth of his care until she was suddenly gone.

After marching through another set of doors, he abruptly realized that he had found his quarry: the matriarch herself. His icy hate reignited into a roaring fire upon seeing her, and he couldn't contain a soft growl from slipping out. She apparently noticed them and began speaking about something; what, he couldn't have said. He couldn't process her words through the pounding wrath in his head. He felt Ashley lean towards him but didn't react, not caring what she was going to say.

"Shepard. I just saw Tali. She's alive."

Shepard's brain shut down. _She's…what? Alive? How?_ He saw Benezia looking at him strangely, and he met her gaze to try and cover his surprise. _Okay, let this sink in later, focus now._ He could barely keep his breathing under control, and his eyes wanted desperately to look around for the quarian. He hadn't had even a fraction of the time to let the reality of her death sink in, and now she was back. Shepard ears finally began to receive what Benezia was saying at the end of her speech.

"I won't be moved by sympathy. No matter who you bring into this confrontation."

Shepard looked over at Liara; her face had grief and confusion written all over it as she faced her mother. "Liara's here because she wants to be, not because I asked her to." He was surprised his words had strung together so coherently.

"Indeed? What have you told him about me, Liara?"

Liara's face scrunched up in anger. "What would I tell him, mother? That you are insane? Evil? The best ways to kill you? What could I say?" Her tone was laced with hurt. "I may not have seen you in years, but this is not the Matriarch Benezia I remember. I have already lost a friend today because of you. Apparently, I have also lost a parent."

Benezia sneered, ignoring Liara's words completely. "Have you ever faced an asari commando unit before? Few humans have."

Shepard grinned. "Can't say that I have. Something to cross off the bucket list, I suppose." He saw Liara give him a confused look and figured Ashley hadn't told her about Tali yet, but there was no opportunity to let her know without clueing Benezia in.

"Your bravado is a poor mask for your fear." Benezia waved her arms, and all three of them froze in a barrier of energy. _Uh oh._ Benezia laughed as she casually walked over to a console and pushed a button, undoubtedly calling in reinforcements.

* * *

Tali crouched by the base of the stairs that led to Benezia's landing, waiting as the matriarch conversed with her friends. She saw the asari freeze the others in place, and knew that she had to act now or never. Despite the three asari she had already nullified, she figured Benezia had others waiting to help. Stuck as they were, her friends would be dead for sure.

She snuck up right behind Benezia, who was too busy rejoicing in her easy victory to be paying attention to peripheral noise. Just as a group of geth entered from the far door, she placed her shotgun directly into the matriarch's knee and pulled the trigger. It was too close to be stopped by biotic barriers, and Benezia collapsed to the floor clasping at her shattered joint. The attack was enough to disrupt her concentration, releasing her friends from their stasis. Liara immediately cried out "Tali! How, what-" The geth soon got her attention, however, and those three focused on clearing out the minions. Before Benezia could recover, Tali pressed her gun into her other knee and blew it out as well. Having effectively crippled the matriarch, she ran down the stairs and joined the squad as they easy breezed through the other half of the asari commando unit as well as the geth. Tali stored away her shotgun after the last asari fell, cracking her back after spending so long hunched over.

"That was an asari commando unit? I think the rachni were harder to beat." She turned to the others, expecting someone to snark back, but they simply stared at her. Shepard walked forward and stood in front of her, looking into her eyes. He then wrapped her into a hug, squeezing hard enough to make her say "Oof."

"We thought you were dead." His voice was thick with emotion. Tali was surprised; she knew they would be happy to see her, but she hadn't expected anything like this.

"I tried to contact you, but the radio was jammed."

He let her go, holding her at arms-length and staring at her like he was afraid she would disappear if he looked away. "How did you escape?"

She let out a breath. "That is a long story, and we have a matriarch to deal with first." He started as if he had forgotten the whole reason they had travelled to Peak 15 in the first place.

"Right. Liara, are you ready for this?"

Liara shook her head. "I am still coming to terms with Tali's miraculous return. I will never be ready for this; let us finish it."

They approached the asari, still collapsed on the floor. She still had the sneer from earlier stuck on her face. "This is not over. Saren is unstoppable."

Shepard folded his arms. "Not going to lie, I expected better from asari commandos." He gave Tali a wink.

Benezia appeared to be fighting some sort of internal battle. "I will not betray him. You will…you…You must listen." Her tone had changed completely, turning from haughty superiority to desperation in an instant. "Saren still whispers in my mind. I can fight him briefly, but the indoctrination is strong."

 _She's indoctrinated…that explains a lot._ Tali saw Shepard's eyebrows shoot up in surprise.

"You're out of his control right now? And you could turn again?"

Benezia shuddered. "Yes. It is a terror to be a prisoner in your own mind. To beat upon the glass as your hands torture and murder." She snapped to Shepard and began to speak in earnest. "Saren sent me here to find the location of the Mu Relay. Its position was lost thousands of years ago."

Shepard shook his head. "Alright, well…do you have it?"

Benezia nodded. "I have it transcribed onto this OSD. Take it."

Liara spoke up. "Knowing the relay's coordinates is not enough. Do you know where he planned to go from there?"

"I am afraid not. You must hurry however; Saren already has this information." Benezia groaned as her body was racked with small convulsions. "He is coming back…I can feel it…in my spine…"

Liara knelt down beside her mother. "No! You can fight it! You are stronger than this."

Benezia caressed Liara's face. "Oh Liara. I am…so proud of you." Liara's eyes were adding more water to her tear-streaked face, and her body was shaking with small sobs at her mother's words. Benezia closed her eyes. "Now…DIE."

Benezia snapped awake and thrust a biotic fist at Liara. Before she got halfway there, Liara shot her in the chest with the pistol she had already drawn. Benezia looked down at herself as blood started pooling out and staining her clothes purple. She coughed, and more blood bubbled from between her lips.

"You must stop him now…you are our last hope, Shepard." She turned her head to look at Liara and smiled, though the effect was grizzly through the gushing blood.

Liara choked as she watched Benezia dying in her arms. "Mother…"

"Goodnight, Little Wing. I will see you again with the dawn." Benezia let out a sigh, and her head fell to the side. Liara pulled Benezia in and cradled her body as she cried, tucking her face into Benezia's neck and hiding there. Shepard motioned for the others to follow him, and they let Liara mourn her mother in peace. As they got close to the large tank, one of the commandos suddenly rose up and started marching towards them. All three of them fumbled for their weapons in surprise, but the asari ignored them and simply stood there like a poorly designed puppet, twitching and jerking unnaturally.

"This one. Serves as our voice. We cannot sing. Not in these low spaces. Your musics are colorless."

Shepard cocked his head sideways. "What…who are you?"

The raspy voice spoke again, joined in a discordant resonance by hundreds of different voices all speaking at once. "We are the mother. We sing for those left behind. The children you thought silenced. We are rachni." Shepard focused on the queen, trapped in the container in front of him.

"What do you want?"

"You are not in harmony with those that sought to control us." The voice paused, as if considering its next words carefully. "What will you sing? Will you release us? Are we to fade away once more?"

Ashley pointed to the tubes attached to the box. "Those contain acid. We could fill the tank and destroy her. The last time the rachni roamed freely, the galaxy was almost destroyed. We can't just let her go."

Tali shook her head; no matter her feelings for giant, mutant spiders, she couldn't condone annihilating an entire species. "The Council has made plenty of mistakes in the past. Letting the krogan drive the rachni to extinction was one of them. This queen has done nothing to us; we can't murder her and her race."

Shepard's eyes narrowed as he gazed upon the giant creature. "What would you do if I let you go free?"

"We would seek a hidden place to teach our children to sing in harmony. If they understand, perhaps we would return. We would not seek war with other species."

A moment passed as Shepard pondered his options, chewing his lip and drumming his fingers on the glass. He made a clicking sound with his tongue, apparently having reached a decision. "I will let you go free."

The voice seemed genuinely surprised, as much as could be discerned through the cacophony. "You will give us a chance to compose anew? We will remember. We will sing of your forgiveness to our children."

Shepard pulled a lever, and the queen rose up to the ceiling. The seals were released, and she gave them a final look before fleeing down the tunnel into the rest of the facility. Shepard sighed. "I really hope that doesn't come back to bite me in the ass."

Ashley snorted. "I promise it will. Literally." Suddenly, Tali found herself being picked up by the woman. "Good to see you again," Ashley said, giving Tali a second bone-crushing hug for the day. "I'm glad you're not dead."

"Thanks, you too," Tali got out after she was put down, coughing slightly. Shepard rubbed his head as Ashley walked back to check on Liara. He took one of Tali's hands in his own, which made Tali blush, and he looked directly into her eyes once more, spreading the hot burn from her cheeks to the back of her neck.

"Hey, uh…we need to talk. But probably not now; big operation and everything. We should get back to the ship and off this damn planet."

Tali chuckled. "Why does it always feel like you say that after every mission?" _He's still holding my hand, why is he doing that. I really need an AC unit installed in this suit._

Shepard smiled. "Maybe if we had a nice planet for once, I wouldn't have to say it. Somewhere tropical. With a beach. Nothing bad can happen in a place like that, right?" He let go and joined Ashley with helping Liara up, saying something to her that Tali couldn't hear. She was too busy relishing the warmth in her hand from Shepard's grasp and thinking that she should almost die more often.


	16. Chapter 16: The First Flame

**Hey everybody! I think this chapter will make a lot of people happy, hopefully. As always, thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Tali groaned as she sat down on her bunk, slowly stretching out her leg and kneading her thigh. She had the feeling that if she asked any more athletics out of her muscles, they would collectively go on strike and leave her unable to move. She looked at her suit and sighed at the disheveled state, knowing that she would probably have to clean her sheets now as well. Grumbling, she got back up and headed to the showers. The crew gave her odd looks as she walked, no doubt marveling at the astounding amount of filth she had clumped on her body. She arrived at the elevator at the same time as Garrus, whose mandibles twitched when he saw her. Though they had both been at the debriefing, the ground team had left immediately afterwards to get an inspection from Chakwas, leaving no time for small talk.

"So…looks like it was a fun mission," Garrus said as they stepped onto the elevator.

"Oh yeah. Walk in the park." Tali folded her arms and looked smugly at the turian. "I took out three asari commandos all by myself."

Garrus scoffed. "What? No way, surely someone else at least helped get through the shields."

"Nope. They all thought I was dead at the time. I was completely alone."

Garrus' lighthearted skepticism changed to a more serious tone. "They thought you were dead? What happened?"

Tali shrugged off his concern. "We got separated, and it appeared that I got left behind in a neutron purge. I was actually riding the same elevator out as they were, only hanging from the bottom."

Garrus stared for a couple of seconds before bursting out laughing. "That is badass. I thought Shepard was supposed to be the Spectre."

"Well I applied, but the Council thought my methods were too extreme."

"Yeah, I bet." The doors opened, and Tali started walking to the showers. "Hey Tali." She turned around and watched as Garrus coughed into his hand and twiddled with a fastening on his armor.

"I just want to say that I'm sorry. About dinner, you know. I didn't mean anything by it."

"Oh. No hard feelings." She gave him a smile. "I get pretty defensive about my people. I shouldn't have stormed off like that."

"You wouldn't need to be defensive if I wasn't attacking. Doesn't matter what my opinion is, I was out of line, and I apologize."

 _Wow. Never expected I would get something even slightly resembling an apology._ "I appreciate that, Garrus."

The turian held out his fist, leaving it stretched out towards her. "Friends?"

Tali laughed. "I see Shepard taught you the fist bump as well?" She lightly touched her knuckles to his. "Friends. Now, I've got to get this stuff off of me. I turned off my olfactory sensors a while ago, but I can't imagine I smell pretty."

"Yes, the scent of eviscerated carcasses is not what I would describe as pretty."

Tali entered one of the showers and carefully unwound her realk, setting it on a hook just outside of the curtain. She turned on the water and stood in it for a minute, letting the gentle drumming ease some of the ache out of her bones. She traced the slightly discolored line on her leg where she had patched her suit in Chakwas' office, just another souvenir from this crazy adventure. She grabbed a brush from the basket of things she had brought and started scrubbing, getting rid of most of the large areas of contamination before using the soap to fully cleanse herself of Noveria. Once this was done, she spent the next ten minutes meticulously washing her realk before hanging it up to dry. She wiped herself down with a towel, making sure that any metal on her suit was 100% free of moisture to prevent rusting. This process took long enough that her shawl was only a little damp by the time she was done. She wrapped the cloth around her body, attaching it at various points for stability before finally placing the hood portion over her head. _Ah, feels nice to get all of that off. Wish I could shower for real._ She attached a small tube to a port on her shoulder and initiated her suit's auto cleanse feature. She shivered as the sweat and grime on her actual skin was absorbed by tiny particles before being blown off her body by small gusts of air. The solution was deposited in the vial on her shoulder, which she sealed, removed, and dropped in the trash can by the door. The refreshing feeling of cleanliness invigorated Tali, giving her the little bounce in her step that she normally had. She was still exhausted, but she thought she had the energy to at least give the drive core a look over before heading to bed.

As she traveled to Engineering, she thought about the current direction of their mission, or rather, the lack of direction, that Shepard had gone over in their meeting. Currently, they had no more leads to follow concerning Saren, so they would be doing Alliance busy work as well as other side missions until something changed. It made her nervous thinking about Saren scheming and getting closer to his goal while they spun their wheels, but there was nothing they could do until another lead appeared.

Adams approached her as soon as she walked through the hallway. "Hey Tali, Shepard said to send you up to his cabin if you showed up. I told him you weren't scheduled for a shift, but he seemed to think you'd come anyway. Can't imagine why." He gave her a wink.

"Oh! Shepard wants to see me…in his cabin. You're sure?"

"Positive. That was twenty minutes ago, so I'd get moving if I were you."

"Right. Thanks, Adams." Tali made her way back to the elevator, her pulse quickening as she waited. _This must be about that 'talk' he wanted to have. It's only been a couple of hours since we got back; must be important._ The light dinged, and Tali walked into the metal box. She hesitated as her finger hovered over the 1 marked Captain's Cabin, feeling like she was trespassing on private property. Shaking away her fears, knowing that he had asked her to come up, she pressed it. Her hands began their rhythmic dancing as she paced in the small space, waiting for the ride to end. After what seemed an interminable amount of time, the elevator stopped moving, and the doors opened to a part of the ship she had never seen before.

A small antechamber separated the lift from the actual cabin, which had a small buzzer next to the closed door. She stood in front of it and took a deep breath.

"Shepard? Um, you wanted to see me?"

"Come on in." The door slid open, revealing the quaint quarters reserved for the captain. The most luxurious thing about the room was the privacy it afforded and the space provided for a work desk. Tali peered around curiously and noticed another small room just to the side. _A private bathroom; I take it back, this is space travel in style._ Other than that, it was an exact replica of most of the other quarters on the Normandy, minus the extra beds. Shepard stood up from his desk, gesturing at the extra chair placed across from him.

"Go on and take a seat." She did so, getting the uncomfortable feeling that she was under review or receiving a reprimand. "You look better," he said, smiling. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm good, just sore. What about you?"

"Nothing Chakwas couldn't stitch back together. Woman's a genius." He glanced at the haphazard condition his desk was in. "Sorry about the mess."

"No problem." Tali sat there awkwardly as they both looked around the room aimlessly. She waited for him to say something, but he appeared to be struggling, so she prompted him. "Is there…something you want to talk about?"

Shepard chuckled nervously. "Yes there is, but now that you're here it's, ah, difficult to know where to start." He chewed his lip, as was his want during intense situations. _Is this an intense situation? Keelah, is he letting me go? Confining me to the ship?_ Tali's leg started to bounce as Shepard continued to think, coming up with all of the worst-case scenarios until the butterflies in her stomach made her nauseous. _Calm down, it's probably nothing._ Finally, he cleared his throat.

"Do you know about the rules of fraternization within the Alliance?"

 _What?_ "Ah…no. But I bet they say it's not allowed."

"Basically, yes. So, if I were an Alliance Commander, which I am, I wouldn't be permitted to have an intimate relationship with someone in my command." Shepard scratched the back of his head.

… _What?_ "That makes sense. I'm not sure what the point-" Tali stopped midsentence as she realized what kind of twist this conversation was taking. _He knows I like him. And he's trying to let me down easy._ Tali wished she could sink into the ground and let it swallow her whole. She didn't want to deal with the heartbreak or humiliation, especially so soon after that last mission. _He couldn't have picked a better time to do this?_ Her nausea made itself known again, but she refused to let it take control and took a deep breath, bracing herself for whatever came next.

Shepard exhaled loudly. "What I'm saying is…I'm not an Alliance Commander. I mean I am, but I am also a Spectre. And you are definitely not in the Alliance."

Tali peeked out of the mental barricade she had made. _Wait, is he saying-_

His piercing blue eyes met hers, and her heart started beating uncontrollably. "Tali, I've never met someone who makes me feel the way you make me feel. Every time you walk in the room, my brain stops working. I could listen to you talk about anything and everything for hours and never get tired of hearing it. You're sweet and funny and a damn good soldier, and I trust you with my life. And when I thought I would never see you again, I realized how much of a mistake I had made not telling you when I had the chance. So, yeah. There it is." Shepard licked his dry lips. "So ah, what do you think about that?"

Tali sat rigidly in her chair, paralyzed by what she had heard. _This is a dream._ She blinked rapidly and pinched herself on the leg, but Shepard was still there, waiting for her to say something back to him. Sweat was beading on his forehead, and Tali could tell how vulnerable he was right now. Understandable, considering he had just bared his heart to her. _Say something, Tali! Speak words! Anything!_

"Yes."

Shepard looked confused. "Yes?"

"Or not yes, um, what I mean is, uh...you too. No, me too."

Shepard's puzzled expression only deepened after that shipwreck of a sentence. Tali reached over and placed her hand on top of Shepard's, enfolding his five fingers with her three. "Shepard, I think I fell for you the day I met you. These months we've spent together protecting the galaxy from all sorts of evil has only made me l-, like you more."

Shepard's face broke out into a huge grin. "Really?"

Tali let out a small laugh. "A young woman gets rescued by a dashing commander who lets her join his crew and then goes off trying to save the galaxy together? How could she possibly develop any kind of interest in him?" She looked down at their hands and rubbed her thumb along the side, relishing the touch. "I just never thought you could ever feel the same." She released him and put her hands back in her lap. "You don't even know what I look like."

"I don't care." Shepard got out of his chair and circled his desk, kneeling beside Tali. "You could be a Garrus clone and I would still want this."

"Well, no one can be that ugly, so consider that bullet dodged." Shepard laughed, and Tali basked in its sound. This laugh was hers now. Shepard was hers. She felt tears begin to fall down her face as the reality of what had just happened started to sink in. _Yet another benefit of having a mask, he can't see that I'm crying at least._

"Okay. This is the part where I would normally kiss you, but," Shepard shrugged, his grin still stuck on his face. Tali's throat was partially closed from holding back her half-sobs, half-laughs, so she simply leaned forward and touched her helmet to his forehead. She took a moment to regain control of her breathing, letting her eyes wander over Shepard's face as she composed herself.

"This is how quarians express a gesture like a…kiss."

"Well I like it."

"You'd probably say you like anything I say right now."

"Yep." Shepard winked, and Tali giggled and gave him a playful shove. Her mind began to think of all the obstacles they would have to conquer if this was going to be a real relationship, and her giddiness started to fade. Shepard noticed her change in posture and put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, what's wrong?"

 _Wrong? Nothing; you're perfect, this is perfect. I've never been happier. But I can't do this to you._ "Shepard, you deserve to be with someone who can make you happy. I can't do that. If we ever wanted to, um, express our feelings, it would have to be few and far between, and even then, I could die. That's not fair to you." She saw Shepard fighting back a smile, and she crossed her arms in a huff. "What?"

Shepard shrugged. "Not gonna lie, I was thinking this whole time that I would never even get to see your face, let alone anything else." He raised an eyebrow, causing Tali to push him again and roll her eyes.

"Shepard, I'm being serious."

"So am I." He placed both of his hands on either side of her mask and made her look at him. "What did I just say?"

"I know but-"

"I want you. You, Tali. And I will gladly take whatever challenges that come along with you. I understand if you're scared, but don't end this because of me" Tali felt Shepard's thumb slowly tracing part of her visor as he smiled at her. "There is no pressure here for anything, just so you know."

Tali wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close, resting her head on his shoulder. "Okay." She could feel his taught frame pressed against hers, and she shivered at the contact, even through her suit. "I can do some research. I know I'm not the first quarian to date another species."

Shepard tenderly brushed his fingers up her back, and a trail of goosebumps followed his touch. "Only if you want to."

Tali broke their embrace, lacing her digits into his. "To feel your skin against mine." She looked back at him and touched her mask to his forehead once more. "To kiss you with my lips." Her free hand fiddled with her hood. "To show you what I look like under this damn mask. Yes, I want to." She glanced away, embarrassed yet thrilled by everything they had been talking about. "Sorry, I think I've watched too many romance movies."

"Well I like it." Tali looked at him suspiciously, making him laugh. "And I'm not just saying that. Promise."

"Who knew you were such a softie." Tali played with his fingers, marveling at how tiny and fragile they appeared.

"Don't spread it around. I've got a reputation to maintain."

"Sure, sure." A comfortable silence fell as they both simply enjoyed the other's presence. Tali pressed each of his fingers into his palm until he made a fist, then carefully extracted them again to their full extension. _How does he not break them every time he punches something?_ Shepard looked amused by her attention to his hand, but he didn't say anything as she put the appendage through a mini gymnastics course, molding it into odd shapes in her fascination.

After too short of a time, Shepard let out a heavy breath. "I should probably get back to work. I haven't even talked to the Council yet about the mission, and there's a mountain of paperwork to go through."

"Of course. I need to rest in any case." They stood up, Shepard walking back to his seat while Tali thought of what to say. "I'll…see you around."

"You better." Tali turned away before Shepard's smile enticed her back and left in a daze, not quite comprehending what all had just happened. _I can't believe it. This is real, isn't it._ She stopped walking abruptly, confused by the wall in front of her. _Oh. This is the bathroom._ Sheepishly, she went back out and gave Shepard a half-hearted wave. "So, that's not the exit."

He grinned at her. "Not for people, at least."

"Wow. Nice joke."

"Thank you, thank you." She felt his eyes on her back as she made her way to the correct door. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Shepard." Her thoughts raced as she got onto the lift, leaning back against the wall and gazing at the ceiling. What would happen once they caught Saren? He couldn't very well just abandon his duties to the Alliance and the Council, and she couldn't do the same for her people. Would physical interaction kill her? What would her father think? _Oh no…Father is going to HATE him._ Despite the cacophony of doubts and questions crowding for attention, they were slowly pushed aside by an overwhelming feeling of joy rising from her chest. _He chose me._ Soft music flooded her soul, growing into a crescendo as she let her emotions take over. She practically danced back to her quarters, much to the amusement of Kaidan who happened to be passing by.

"Did Shepard finally ask you out or something?"

Tali halted, bewildered by his spot-on question. "What? How did…" She saw his jaw slack open and realized he had been joking.

"Wait, he did?"

"Huh?" Tali could tell he wasn't buying her playing dumb, but persisted anyway. "I'm really tired, sorry, can't talk now."

"Come on, you can't drop a bomb like that and run away. Tali!" She had already disappeared into the quarters, small laughs bubbling out as she heard Kaidan's continued protests. She tossed the dirty sheets under her bunk and simply laid on the bare bed, for once enjoying the soft thrumming of the ship instead of wishing for a noisier engine. _What a day,_ she thought; she was asleep almost before her eyes finished closing.


	17. Chapter 17: A Gift

**Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed the over-abundance of fluff in the last chapter, because I sure loved writing it. I'm debating how many of the side missions to include before launching Virmire and essentially starting the downhill slide to the end. Let me know what you think!**

* * *

"Okay, listen up people." All six members of the ground team were gathered in the conference room, waiting to hear about their next assignment. Two days had passed since Noveria, with the Normandy's route seeming to be aimless except for a stop at a refueling station. Tali was sure the others were glad to finally have something to do; she herself had been busy getting used to being an 'item,' as Kaidan had said. _Him and his fat mouth._ By the time she had woken up, the Lieutenant had spread rumors about her and Shepard to the entire crew. She was harassed incessantly during breakfast for details which she refused to give, not knowing what Shepard wanted, until he came into the mess hall. He had simply announced that they were together and to quit bugging Tali about it, got his breakfast, and sat down at the table like nothing was different. After that, everyone had subsided into giving her sly looks in the halls, their eyes boring unasked questions into her helmet. _Nosy._

"Back on Feros, we picked up some interesting data from one of the geth terminals and passed it on to Admiral Hackett, since we were too busy hunting Saren. It seems the geth are amassing their forces, maybe preparing for a full-scale invasion." _Oh yeah, I forgot about that data we collected._ "The Alliance has found the geth's main base in the cluster, and they are requesting our help to finish them off." Shepard clicked his omnitool, and a hologram appeared in the center of the room displaying the landscape of the enemy stronghold. "Kaidan, Ash, you will be working directly with the Alliance on this, helping to distract the geth and holding the front lines here." He pointed at the mass of troops on one side of the map. "I'll be taking Garrus, Tali, and Wrex with me, using the Normandy's stealth systems, and dropping in behind these buildings, right next to the base."

Liara shifted in her seat. "What will I be doing, Commander?"

"Sorry Liara, you'll have to sit this one out. I can't take you with me, and you're not part of the Alliance."

The asari frowned. "I do not need to be coddled because of what happened on Noveria."

Shepard shook his head. "That's not what I'm doing. It's just how this one is going down."

Liara crossed her arms and stared at the map, her jaw set. Kaidan leaned forward to catch Shepard's attention. "She could work as a support with my unit. We could make up some title like mercenary biotic specialist or whatever. At the very least, she could give the soldiers some barriers."

Shepard stroked his chin. "They might accept that. We'll go ahead and try. Nice thought, Lieutenant." Liara smiled at Kaidan gratefully, causing him to blush a bit. _Aha. Maybe now I can get a little revenge._

"Any other questions?" Silence. "We'll be on site in an hour. Dismissed." Tali watched the others file out, choosing to remain in her seat until only her and Shepard remained. Garrus smirked at her from the door but left them alone. She stood up and walked over to Shepard, taking one of his hands in her own.

"Hey."

Shepard's face lit up from his Commander grimace. "Hey." He glanced at their locked fingers. "You really like the whole hand-holding thing, huh?"

"You bet." She flipped his hand over, looking at his scarred knuckles. "There's just so many of them! And they're so small!"

"Now I'm self-conscious." He chuckled, letting her know he was kidding.

"Sure you are." She bumped into him with some force, sending him stumbling. "I have to get ready. Thanks for not trying to keep me on the ship or something silly like that to 'protect' me."

"Wouldn't dream of it. I think you've proven you can handle yourself just fine." He rubbed his leg, quirking an eyebrow up at her. "Nice hip check."

"Mmhmm." She purposefully swayed said hips a little more than usual as she walked to the exit. _What are you doing._ She resumed her normal gait halfway there, her cheeks burning. "Let's go kill some geth," she murmured lamely, disappearing before he could comment on her antics.

* * *

Tali crouched behind the rocks next to Garrus, peering over the outcropping at the geth fort. The frontal assault was keeping the majority of the robots distracted, though the soldiers were being quite passive. Their numbers could likely overwhelm the geth eventually, but not without sustaining quite a few casualties. If Shepard could get in, retrieve the data, and get out, Hackett could bombard the rest from the safety of orbit.

The geth had left a colossus behind to guard the entrance, along with a couple of shock troopers. _That's a big thing to take down without the Mako._ A month ago, Tali would have thought their odds of survival against the giant machine to be next to nothing, but now, she was merely worried one of them might get injured.

Shepard made a chopping motion, and he, Tali, and Wrex popped up and charged towards the geth. Garrus took off one of the shock troopers' heads, staying back on the rocks to cover them with his sniper rifle. They had spread out enough so the colossus would have to choose only one of them to shoot before they got to the next set of cover. Apparently, it thought the krogan was the biggest threat, as a pulse charge struck Wrex squarely in the chest, throwing him back behind Garrus where he tumbled down the hill. _Well, he won't be back for a bit._ Tali hunkered down next to a metal barricade, making sure not to touch it in case the colossus hit it with its energy blast. She heard Garrus' gun crack again, and her sensors blipped as the other shock trooper vanished from the network. _Time to give them a clear shot._ She tapped into the colossus' shields, temporarily frying them and letting Garrus fire directly into its lightbulb. The geth screamed a metallic hiss, firing its machine gun at the turian and keeping him pinned behind the rocks. Shepard sprinted out from behind his box, running straight at the colossus. A blue ball fizzed its way towards him, but he jumped aside at the last minute; Tali could have sworn the light clipped his arm, but he didn't stop, sliding underneath the thing's many legs.

Tali switched to her pistol and started chipping away at its armor along with Garrus while Shepard danced between the metal pillars, constantly shooting and barely avoiding being crushed to death with every turn. He seemed to know what the colossus was going to do before the robot did, gracefully dodging its attacks and making it look effortless. After systematically taking out three legs, he focused on the belly itself, tearing through it and getting showered in sparks as his bullets ripped into circuits and wires. As the colossus lifted its head up, letting out a warble heavily mixed with static, Garrus placed another bullet in its face, finishing it off. Shepard rolled out of the way as the giant collapsed, sending a plume of dust up into the air.

Wrex reappeared, following Garrus to meet them at the door. His armor was singed and dusty, but he looked no worse for the wear. "I missed all the fun. Now I'm pissed."

Garrus opened his mouth to reply, but Shepard cut him off; time was of the essence. "They'll know we're here now. Can you tell how many are inside?"

Tali glanced at her screen. "Scanners are showing at least twenty more connections."

Shepard nodded. "We should move before reinforcements arrive. Let's go." The mechanism opened, and the team scuttled into the building. As soon as they walked through the entrance, a couple of juggernauts opened fire from either side, sending missiles hurtling straight toward their feet. Tali watched in slow motion as the rocket traveled down the narrow hall; with nowhere to run and a similar projectile approaching from the other side, she did the only thing she could and braced herself for impact. A shot rang out, and the rocket exploded halfway to its destination; Garrus shifted his gun and started taking shots at the geth. On the other side, Tali saw blue light cascade down the hall, and that rocket blew up harmlessly as well. With the juggernaut distracted by Garrus, Tali quickly closed the distance between them while pulling up her anti geth programs on her omnitool. Once its shields were disabled, she stood almost face to face with it and unloaded her shotgun into its chest, trading shot for shot with the machine. Just as her shields were going to give way, her bullets finally punched through the hard exterior, and the geth dropped to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut. She turned to check on Shepard and Wrex; the krogan had the juggernaut pinned on the ground and was crushing through its hard exterior like it was glass with biotically enhanced fists. _I think he's got it covered._

She went past the geth corpse and glanced around the corner. Immediately, shards of the wall started flaking off as bullets rained down on her position. She jerked her head back, involuntarily wincing at the whistling projectiles. "They're waiting for us on this side, Shepard."

"Same here," his voice came over the radio. "Can you override one of them? We'll use that to make our way in at the same time."

"Okay." Tali typed away, targeting one of the snipers hiding in the balcony. "And…go." Her target, as always, caused the geth to turn around in confusion, and she and Garrus rushed into the main area. _That is a LOT of geth._ The first floor was teeming with them, with a few placed upstairs in perfect spots to keep them pinned behind cover. She found herself next to one of the stairs, and motioned at Garrus to follow her. If they could take out one section, Garrus could replace them and pick off targets with ease. Hopefully.

As they jogged up, Tali could hear the gunfire intensify in the others' direction. _Ancestors, please keep him safe._ Garrus nudged her as they crouched by the doorway, waiting for a good opportunity to pass through.

"So, you and the Commander, huh?"

Tali looked at him incredulously. "You want to do this now?"

"What?" He shrugged. "I haven't gotten to bug you about it yet. Not really. Now seemed as good a time as any."

"Unbelievable." She slid into the next room, colliding with one of the snipers' legs and destroying the light on its face with a single blast. Garrus sabotaged another's gun, stopping it from firing, and took out a third with his own sniper. The one Tali had killed fell on top of her; she used its body as cover as she fired on the last unit. Her shotgun wasn't as effective at range, but with it unable to get a clear shot at her, she won the fight eventually. She shoved the geth off of her and took Garrus' proffered hand.

"So are you going to be able to…you know."

Tali punched him in the arm. "Garrus!"

"Sorry, just curious." Tali overemphasized an eyeroll, but it was wasted as Garrus was busy setting up on the railing.

"That is none of your business." She lobbed a grenade down at a tightly packed group, hoping to catch a couple in the explosion but unable to remain up long enough to see if it did any damage.

"We're friends, remember? That means I get to ask you all sorts of embarrassing questions."

"Ass."

Garrus looked at her and shrugged his shoulders, and his eyes widened as he briefly left the scope. "Watch out!"

Tali saw the grenade land less than a foot from her and rolled away in a last-ditch effort to distance herself from the bomb. A gust of air picked her up and threw her over the balcony, sending her tumbling down to the main floor. She twisted herself around in midair, just in time for her feet to crunch squarely in a shock trooper's face. The impact still sent waves of pain up from her heels and one of her knees, but nothing appeared to be broken. _Why am I always the one that gets thrown somewhere?_ She remembered Wrex' flight not five minutes earlier and retracted her complaint, but she still felt that she received an unfair proportion of airtime.

A destroyer circled the boxes she had landed in between and lined up its weapon, but before it could fire, it floated helplessly backwards directly into a clothesline from Wrex. Shepard jumped up and used Wrex' back to launch himself forward, taking out two more geth that had formed up behind Tali before neatly landing in a roll next to her.

Wrex crouched beside the Commander, eyeing him with a hint of irritation. "Maybe ask next time before using me as a springboard. I almost accidentally shot you."

"I had to do it. Mostly." He grinned at the krogan, who just grumbled and turned his attention back to the geth. Shepard turned back to Tali, but she cut him off before he could ask.

"I'm fine. Totally planned that."

"Sure you did." She laughed, the rush from her flight keeping her pulse racing, got to her feet, and leaned around the side of their cover; Garrus had taken out all but one sniper from the opposite balcony, and less than half of the original force remained on the ground level. She saw a juggernaut standing next to a steam pipe. _Worth a shot._ She took control of the building's maintenance systems and raised the pressure in that pipe to unhealthy levels. When nothing happened, she shrugged internally, figuring it hadn't harmed anything in any case. Then, the entire section of wall erupted, taking the juggernaut and a couple of other geth down. Shepard ducked down, covering his head.

"Holy shit! What happened?"

 _Gotta play it cool, like that was what I knew would happen._ "Totally planned that too." _Could have been better, but I've definitely had worse deliveries._

Shepard barked a short laugh, his wheeze a mixture of anxiety and admiration. "Now I know Wrex' pain. Anyway, nice job."

Wrex growled. "Not bad quarian, but it's my turn. Stand back and watch."

Shepard tried to stop him, calling out "Wrex wait-", but the krogan had already vanished, barreling right for the remaining enemies. Shepard sighed, giving Tali a mournful look. "What's the point in being the Commander if no one listens?"

"Well, you probably get paid more." Tali paused, having thought of something. "Hey, I just realized I'm doing this for free. I don't suppose there's some sort of discretionary fund in the Spectre vault for mercenaries or something?"

"Are you kidding, I even have to pay for my own weapons." He squinted at her suspiciously, though his half-smile revealed his lack of seriousness. "Are you just dating me for the money?"

"You caught me." She looked over the top of the boxes. "Should we go help?"

"Nah, he'll be fine." As if to punctuate his point, a geth arm flew by them so hard that it stuck itself into a crate. "Might as well let him have his fun."

Tali chuckled but didn't argue. "While we're just sitting here, then, I'll see if I can find the data we need." She busied herself with cracking into the network the computers shared; thankfully, the geth used the same encryption schemes for basically everything, so it was an easy job. Without any active geth consciousnesses to counteract her efforts, now that they had eliminated all but the ones Wrex was currently beating into scrap heaps, she freely maneuvered through the various files. _These look promising._ As she downloaded the information, a voice rang out from all of the terminals spread throughout the building. The melodious tones were haunting as they echoed around the now nearly empty space. Tali thought something was odd about them: _wait a minute, it's in Khelish!_ She had simply thought her translator had been working overtime, but the intonation and rhythm were unmistakably quarian. _What the hell are the geth doing with an old quarian recording._ It would have had to been made before the Morning War; quarians hadn't invested time or resources into music since their forced exile.

Shepard glanced around, looking slightly unnerved. "What was that? Did you do that?"

"I think it was some sort of signal that activated after I obtained the data. It's…quarian." Shepard's brow lowered as he looked at her.

"That seems fucked up."

"I agree, but it isn't like they would have ever expected a quarian to hear it. They must have their own reasons, but I have no idea what they could be." Wrex walked back to them, grinning like an idiot. "Looks like we're done here anyway. We should leave sooner rather than later."

Shepard gave her a look of mock hurt, and she held up her hands. "Sorry Commander, what do you think we should do?" Her voice was laden with sarcasm.

"Thank you. Let's get out of here."

"An excellent idea."

* * *

Tali quietly ate her food while Shepard talked, not really paying attention to what he was saying. Normally, she wouldn't miss a word even if he was simply chatting about Mako repairs, but she was busy figuring out how to broach the subject of the geth data. She had almost subconsciously created a local copy for herself before transferring it over to Shepard, and the information it contained was astounding. Most of it was encrypted beyond her capacity to penetrate without years of study, but the little she had managed to glean indicated that it could prove invaluable in her people's perpetual struggle against their AI creations. It would be the perfect Pilgrimage gift, but she didn't want to go behind Shepard's back and hold on to it in secret. _Of course he'll say it's alright. Why wouldn't he?_ Still, she worried about it anyway, especially since she hadn't asked permission to copy and mine the data in the first place.

She noticed Shepard looking at her expectantly. "Ah, gotcha," she said noncommittally.

"Tali?"

"Mm?"

"I just said I was thinking about adopting a rachni." He gave her a wry smile. "Somehow 'ah, gotcha' doesn't seem like the response you would normally give to that."

"Oh, I'm sorry." She folded her hands on the table. "I guess I was lost in thought."

"That's alright." Shepard looked at her quizzically. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes, I just…hang on." Tali narrowed her eyes. "The rachni thing was a joke, right?"

He laughed. "Yes, Tali, that was a joke."

"Good." She twiddled her thumbs. "So, you know that data we got from the geth yesterday?"

"My memory isn't that bad, I promise."

Tali ignored the quip, focusing instead on getting her question out. "Well, I might still have a copy of it."

He looked confused but devoid of any anger at least. That was good. "Not that I mind, but may I ask why?"

"What we collected…it was more than just the geth's battle plans. So much about the geth is shrouded in mystery right now, how much they have evolved in the last three hundred years, what they've been doing this whole time. The data holds some of these answers. It would be the greatest Pilgrimage gift in recent memory." She realized that her food was gone and unlocked the package from her mask, not wanting to look silly any longer than she had to. She played with the bag as she continued. "I was wondering if I could use it for mine."

Shepard leaned back in his stool and folded his arms, his face losing all expression. "I don't know, Tali. Copying it alone broke a dozen Alliance regulations, but allowing a foreign power to have access to sensitive military information that hundreds of soldiers were involved with retrieving…"

Tali lowered her head. _He's right. I shouldn't have even asked._ Another side of her, however, disagreed. _My people need that data. You have to fight. Make him understand._ "I didn't mean to break protocol, that was an accident. This could change the balance of power between the quarians and the geth. The information it contains might someday help my people reclaim Rannoch. Please Shepard, you have to understand, it's not even about me…" She trailed off as she looked back up to see Shepard grinning at her.

"I'm sorry, but I had to pull your leg. I can't believe you ever thought I would say no." His smile faded a little, and Tali watched his eyebrows knit together in concern. "Did you think I would refuse?"

 _Crap, I think I hurt his feelings._ "No no, I didn't, but then you did, and I wanted to let you decide, and I felt bad about copying it without asking, and…wait." She paused, the full extent of everything he had just said finally sinking in. "I can have it?"

"Of course you can, I-ouch!" Shepard cut off with a yelp as Tali banged his shin with her foot.

"You little bosh'tet! I was so worried you would be mad at me, or that you would have to say no because of protocol, and then you pull that?" Shepard hadn't lifted his head from the table where he had set it after receiving her kick, and she suddenly remembered he didn't have an ever-present shin guard like she did. And she had kicked hard. "Keelah, are you alright? I'm so sorry, I forgot you weren't wearing armor."

He tilted his head to the side, smiling at her through the pain. "I'll admit, I deserved that." He straightened back up, still rubbing his leg. "Remind me never to sit across from you again."

She chuckled, glad she hadn't broken anything. She had kicked HARD. Shepard seemed pensive as he continued to nurse his shin. "So does that mean you'll be returning to the Fleet? You have your gift, after all."

She was genuinely shocked. "Of course not! I promised I would help you catch Saren, and I will. What's the point in helping the Fleet if the galaxy gets destroyed by Reapers?" She bit her lip. "Besides, we still haven't worked out the details of…us yet. After we're not on the same ship anymore, at least."

"I'm glad. I didn't want to assume you'd stay, but I'd hoped you would." He gave her a rueful grin. "I get where you were coming from with the data situation."

She grinned. "Aha! The sock is in the other shoe now!" Shepard stared at her in confusion for a second before bursting out laughing. Tali crossed her arms, slightly annoyed when half of the room stopped eating to look at Shepard's guffaws. "I'm guessing that's not the phrase."

"That's the only phrase I'm using from now on."

"I stuck my tongue out at you, just so you know."

"Thanks for the update."


	18. Chapter 18: Twisted Heart

**Hello all! I decided to write from Garrus' perspective for his loyalty mission; it only seemed fair. I hope I do him justice and that you like it!**

* * *

Garrus breathed slowly, trying and failing to contain his anticipation while he waited for the Normandy to reach its next destination. One of his contacts had intercepted a distress call from the MSV Fedele: Dr. Saleon's ship. As luck would have it, the Normandy happened to be extremely close by when the information came through. Shepard had redirected the ship's heading immediately upon receiving the news; Garrus hadn't been sure they would be allowed to investigate a personal matter, despite the drop they had made for Wrex' armor, and he was grateful for the Commander's cooperation. Now, at long last, he would be able to rectify the mistake C-Sec had made and get justice for all of Dr. Saleon's victims. The number of bodies the salarian had left in his wake over the years yielded but one judgement: death.

Joker's voice rang out over the intercom, interrupting his thoughts. "Approaching the Fedele now. No one's answered my hails, and there's barely enough power registering to keep life support online. Everything about this screams that old movie, Alien; if I see one xenomorph, I'm leaving you guys behind." Garrus had no idea what Joker was talking about, but he shook his head at the pilot's glibness. _He has more mouth than I do, and that's saying something._

He had already checked and double-checked his gear long before they arrived and was standing near the airlock a good twenty minutes before Shepard appeared. Garrus couldn't help but chuckle when he saw Tali trail in a few seconds later. _I think Tali's missed maybe one mission, tops._ Kaidan walked in as well, completing Shepard's magic number for squad members. His hair was shining with that strange substance humans used to keep it in shape; Garrus knew it was rather common for humans to put various things in their head-fur, but Kaidan always had enough to craft his into a solid helmet. _Hey, that's not bad…_

"You sure you need your helmet, Kaidan? I think the gel's got you covered." Tali snickered at Garrus' jab, but Kaidan ignored her and swept a hand through his greasy locks.

"You just wish you had something as cool as this, instead of those pointy rocks."

"I really don't." Garrus turned to Shepard. "Yours is always so short; what does it look like if you let it grow out?"

Shepard patted his prickly scalp absentmindedly. "I don't keep it buzzed just because I'm military. Let's leave it at that."

Garrus pointed at Tali. "You're on old pictures detail. There's got to be something on the extranet; inquiring minds need to know."

Shepard looked at her pleadingly. "You wouldn't." Tali opened her mouth to respond, but apparently couldn't find anything suitable to say and closed it without commenting. Garrus laughed at Shepard's betrayed expression, some of the tension in his stomach getting released by the action. Shepard cocked an eyebrow at the turian. "You're awfully cheery."

"Pre-mission stress makes me chatter, and this one is…personal. As you know. Don't worry, I'll shut up as soon as we can start moving."

"Hey." Shepard searched Garrus' eyes, trying to read his expression. "You good?"

 _No._ "Yes. Just need to put this behind me, you know."

"I understand that feeling." A series of clanking noises and a green light over the airlock let them know the Normandy had finished docking to the other ship. Garrus strode into the chamber, eager to cross this piece of unfinished business off his list and to escape the personal conversation he knew Shepard wanted to have. Shepard wouldn't approve of his desire to execute the doctor without due process, but the system had let this monster roam free once before; he wouldn't let regulations get between him and his target this time. Better to ask forgiveness than permission.

Garrus avoided looking at the others, readying his sniper while the room pressurized to the other vessel. The loud hiss stopped after a few seconds, and the hatch slowly opened, connecting the Normandy to the foreign deck. Garrus noticed how quiet the room was; even the Normandy's drive core made some noise that could be heard almost anywhere. Here, however, there was only the dull buzzing of old lightbulbs burning over an empty floor. When they stopped walking to inspect their surroundings, the silence weighed down on them like a physical force.

Shepard took the lead, treading lightly as he approached the door. Garrus pressed his back against the wall on one of the sides, while Shepard did the same on the other. Unfortunately, the door couldn't be cracked; it was either fully opened or fully closed. Shepard signaled, and Garrus crouched and pivoted into the next room, looking over his scope for targets. What he saw chilled his spine, causing him to recoil in disgust. Despite his past dealings with the criminal, nothing had ever shown up during his investigation like this.

At first glance, the thing standing in front of them could have been mistaken for a normal human being, albeit with a hunchback and a few lumps. Garrus knew what all of the bloating was from, however; organs that hadn't grown right and had been left in the victims to fester. The skin had turned into an unhealthy shade somewhere between gray and yellow, and its eyes were oozing small rivets of blood. Sores covered the body, as did random parts that shouldn't exist where they were, such as fingers coming out of elbows and what looked like a fully formed liver sticking out of a neck. Upon hearing them, it jerked its head in their direction, and a hollow moan escaped its puffy lips. Sickened, Garrus placed a bullet in its skull, ending its misery. They encountered a few more specimens of various species scattered throughout the place; some charged them with reckless abandon, their minds clearly gone, but others meekly accepted their fate, seemingly grateful to escape their living hell.

After the last had been dealt with, Garrus made his way to a set of cages on the wall. Several more bodies lay locked inside; there was barely enough room for a human to sit up straight, and some cages had two or three bodies stuffed together. About half had been opened, no doubt the cause of the current escape.

Shepard and Tali entered the cockpit, where they found two more monstrosities guarding the controls. Upon seeing them, the things threw themselves at the ground, wheezing pitifully. They looked perfectly capable of putting up a fight if they wanted, but they, like some of the others, apparently just wanted an end. Shepard grimaced but quickly finished the grizzly business, placing two shots in the heads. _I knew he wouldn't stop. Look at how many more he has killed…this is on me._

The Commander gazed around at the scene, his teeth grinding behind a clenched jaw. "It looks like they escaped somehow, took over the ship. Though if they weren't looking for rescue, why didn't they just end it themselves?"

"They wanted revenge." Garrus made his way to the one door they hadn't opened yet, the only one that had an active lock engaged. "They wanted to make sure this wouldn't happen to anyone else."

"I suppose you're right." Shepard joined Garrus, staring forward at the metal door. "That's what we're here for. To bring him to justice."

Garrus snorted. "You mean bringing justice to him."

"No."

Garrus whirled on Shepard. "What do you mean, no? Look around at what he's done. He deserves to die. You have the authority to carry out the law as you see fit. We have killed hundreds of people simply because they were in our way; why should we show restraint now?"

"We've done what we had to. The ends don't justify the means, but we don't usually have a choice. This time we do. If I execute him, I become no better than Saren, from all the stories I've heard about his exploits."

Garrus clenched his fist, trying to keep his voice from raising in volume. "Any number of things could happen if we try to bring him in. He could escape, or the courts could acquit him on a technicality, or…anything. We know what he deserves; we should give it to him, while we have the chance."

"It's not your fault, you know."

"What?"

Shepard surveyed the scene behind them, gesturing at the grotesque corpses. "All of this. It's not your fault."

Garrus looked away. "That's not what this is about."

"That's exactly what this is about. You feel guilty that you didn't stop Saleon back on the Citadel, and you want to rectify your mistake, right? So that it doesn't happen again, and to ease your conscience."

"I…" _I hate when he knows exactly what I'm thinking._ "If I had taken him down, instead of listening to my superiors, none of these people would have died. This is my fault, Shepard." He heard his voice becoming emotional and swallowed away the catch in his throat, steadying his tone. "He needs to die. I have to kill him."

Shepard scratched at his cheek, and Garrus could see the wheels turning in his mind as he chose his next words. "I've struggled for a long time with guilt, Garrus. For surviving. For not being able to save people who needed my help. If you take responsibility for everything that is out of your control, you'll go crazy. You remember Balak, from the asteroid?"

"Of course."

"If he goes on to murder more people because I chose to save the hostages instead of killing him, that won't be on me. I'll feel like shit, sure, but we can't control what other people do. That will be Balak's fault and Balak's alone, and this massacre was Saleon's. Not yours."

Garrus stared at the ground, wrestling with Shepard's words. They sounded nice, but he wasn't sure he could believe them. Every choice has consequences, and his inaction had had quite dire ones this time. If he didn't take responsibility for them, doesn't that just make him a coward? Still, the image of becoming like Saren, cold ruthlessness incarnate, made him think twice about his decision. Shepard had led them well so far, and Garrus had gained an immense amount of respect for the Commander during their journey. Maybe a bit of trust wouldn't go awry.

"Alright. We'll do it your way." Garrus saw Shepard smile and sighed. "Let's hurry up before I change my mind."

Kaidan and Tali remained tactfully silent throughout the exchange, moving around and examining random parts of the room to appear busy. After the conversation ended, the quarian hacked into the lock, springing the door open for them. Garrus stalked into the private bedroom the salarian had hidden inside, finding him cowering behind a desk at the far end of the quarters. Upon seeing that his intruders weren't any of his patients, the doctor straightened up, relief written on his face.

"Thank goodness you made it, those monsters had been trying to get in for days. I didn't know if anyone would pick up my distress signal."

"Shut up." Garrus instinctively reached for a pair of handcuffs on his waist before he remembered he didn't have any, not since quitting C-Sec. "Dr. Saleon, you are under arrest for illegal experimentation, kidnapping, and murder, among other things."

The salarian looked shocked. "Dr. Saleon? You must be mistaken, I am Dr. Heart."

Shepard looked at Garrus for confirmation, who simply nodded. "This is him. I'll never forget his face."

Dr. Heart's eyes screwed up in anger. "You there, human, keep this crazy person away from me. I am a simple doctor, and he is accusing me of outlandish crimes."

Shepard took a step forward, his expression darkening. "We all saw those 'monsters' that you created, Doctor. It took a lot of convincing to keep my friend here from simply killing you outright. I suggest you not make this harder on yourself and comply."

The salarian started shaking his head, backing away from the group. "This isn't right! No, you'll never take me!" He pulled out a pistol and started shooting, the bullets sizzling into their shields. Garrus reacted, snapping his rifle into his shoulder and popping a slug right through one of Saleon's bulbous eyes, leaving a splash of gore on the wall behind him. The doctor toppled lifelessly to the ground, his mouth still twisted into a sneer.

Garrus let his rifle drop, his frustration rising. "What was the point of all that, then? Why did we even bother giving him a chance?"

"Because, even though the Council has given us the right to be judge, jury, and executioner, that's not how we should operate. All we can do is determine how we act; he chose to end this in violence. Like his victims, his death was his own choice." Shepard shrugged. "At least, that's how I see it. I don't want to pretend like I have it all figured out. I'm just giving my view on things. And since I'm the boss, you have to at least listen." He walked over to check the body, looking around the room for anything of interest.

 _I suppose he might be right._ "I see your point. I…will have to think about it. Thank you for your help." _Did you just stop arguing? Dad would never believe this._ "I'm sick of this place. Whenever you're ready, I'd like to leave."

"Of course. Tali, would you mind getting whatever's on his computer? We'll go immediately."

* * *

Garrus listened in disbelief to Wrex' tale, propping his back against the wall and lightly gripping a mostly empty bottle of turian brandy. Everyone else had gone to work or bed by this point, but he and the krogan had spent the last hour swapping adventure stories. After a rather large amount of alcohol was consumed by the both of them, any previous animosity vanished, and the conversation was jovial and filled with buzzed laughter.

"After three days, everyone else on that station was dead. But I had her, and she knew it. She was trapped in a room, patching up her wounds, and I was guarding the only exit. Next thing I knew, the station went critical, and it was all I could do to get to my ship and escape the blast."

"So you got her then?"

"There was no way she could have made it out. I saw her ship still docked when I left. And yet, when I was halfway between there and collecting my payment, I received a little message. 'Better luck next time…'"

Garrus wheezed out a laugh, pounding the table with his free hand. Wrex chuckled as well, shaking his head ruefully. "That asari has more of a quad than most krogan, I can tell you that."

"Did you ever find her?"

Wrex sloshed around the ryncol in his bottle, staring at the liquid thoughtfully. "I'm not superstitious, you know, but if someone can survive all that…I went back to the volus and told him Aleena was alive. Convinced him to keep me as a personal bodyguard in case she showed up. Easiest century of pay I've ever had."

"Damn. You're a crafty bastard."

"I have my moments." They both took a moment to swig some more poison into their systems. _A lot of turians would call me a traitor if they saw me sharing a drink with a krogan like this. Hell, I might have been one of them a few years ago. And they would be wrong._

"I heard things got pretty heated down there." Wrex didn't bother to look at Garrus, letting the turian decide whether or not to answer the unspoken question floating in the air.

"Nah, wasn't that exciting actually. Only one firearm besides ours on the whole ship." Wrex snorted, his scars crinkling up and distorting the right side of his face. Maybe it was the pleasant feeling behind his skull, but something compelled Garrus to continue. "No but…I was just reminded that I don't know everything there is to know. That I might not have as many answers as I thought I did." _Okay, this is getting way too deep._ Garrus coughed. "I should check the Mako, I haven't finished all of the repairs yet."

Wrex grunted, not moving as Garrus trudged over to the elevator. As the doors closed and he started descending, he noticed he was still clutching his precious alcohol. _Ah, my old friend. Whatever would I do without you?_ Contemplating the dark substance, he thought of the other friends he had made during this crazy ride. He pictured his dad's face, frowning at Garrus' use of the word 'friends.' _You're getting soft, Garrus. Maybe that's not such a bad thing._


	19. Chapter 19: Toombstones

**Hey guys! Since there wasn't much information on this backstory in canon, I definitely took some creative liberties. In any case, I never like to put much in these author's notes because I never know what to say, so thank you for the support and I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Shepard sat at his desk, mulling over Hackett's message as they made their way to the Kepler Verge. Someone had been murdering a string of Alliance scientists, all of whom were involved in the same project years ago. They were on route to the last surviving member, as Hackett suspected he would soon be targeted by their nameless assailant. What bugged Shepard was the tag at the end of the email: "This might be of some personal interest to you, Shepard." _What does that mean?_ He had tried researching the project the scientists had worked on, but the information was hidden behind walls of 'top secret' and 'redacted'. Whatever it was, someone clearly wasn't happy with the results, and Hackett believed Shepard had some connection to it. "I've got a bad feeling about this," he muttered, drumming his fingers on the table as he reread the briefing for the umpteenth time. Putting aside his unease, he focused on deciding who to take with him this time. He smiled slightly as he picked Tali first with barely a thought. It really wasn't favoritism; her technical skills were simply irreplaceable in the field. He doubted anyone would believe him, though.

He keyed the intercom. "Tali, Liara, Ashley, gear up and assemble in ten. I'll meet you in the hangar."

* * *

The bodies lying outside the entrance did not bode well as Shepard drove the Mako to the underground bunker. He rolled the tank to a stop a few feet shy of the structure and, meeting no resistance, they went ahead and hopped out. He got down on one knee as he inspected the corpses. "That's odd. These aren't Alliance soldiers; this armor pegs them as Blue Suns." He frowned, looking around for answers. "Why would an Alliance scientist need to hire protection instead of using the military?"

A sharp pain shot up from his leg, his shin screaming in protest. He heard the gunshot a moment later, as well as the ringing sound of his shields letting him know they were depleted. "Get down!" He scrambled to the overhang near the door, limping from his injury; he was pretty sure the bullet had lodged itself in his bone. A merc poked his head over the lip, and Liara caught him in a field and threw him off. He bounced once, and the low gravity sent him flying hundreds of feet off into the distance before landing again. Shepard checked his shields, grateful to see them slowly regaining power.

"They must have a sniper. Nothing else could get through all of my shields in one hit. Thank goodness they're shit."

"One of them is, at least." Shepard glanced over to see Ashley doubled over holding her stomach. Another bullet ricocheted off the concrete near Shepard's head, causing him to duck. He moved over to Ashley, leading her deeper into the alcove of the entrance way. Once they were safely hidden from the attackers, he removed her hand and checked her wound. The suit had thrown up a makeshift barrier to keep the air from being sucked out, like his own, but he could still see blood seeping out behind the purple light.

"That doesn't look good. Ash, how're you feeling?"

"I'm fine." She groaned as she positioned her gun across her lap, pointed towards the outside. "After we get inside, I can apply medigel. I'll be good until then." She chuckled. "Better be careful Skipper, or Tali will get jealous."

"Ha ha." Shepard left Ashley near the door and repositioned himself in the arch. He tapped Tali on the shoulder. "Can you get the door open? Liara and I will deal with them until you do. Ash needs to get inside."

She typed a few quick strokes on her omnitool. "Already done. I'll get her inside." Tali scuttled over to Ashley and helped her stumble inside, the door shutting behind them.

Shepard chewed his lip as he considered their situation. They couldn't let these mercs stay out here while they tried to save the scientist; they could set up a kill zone, or steal the Mako, and then there would be no hope. The Mako…

"Hey Liara."

"Yes Commander?"

"It's easier to lift things in this low grav environment, right?"

Liara narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm not throwing you again. You have already been shot once."

"No no, not this time. I was thinking…could you move the Mako?"

She looked at him incredulously for a second, but her gaze glazed over as she seriously considered the proposition. "Perhaps. That man did travel a fair distance. In any case, why would you want to?"

Shepard peeked around the lip, marking the enemies in his mind before finding cover again. "If you could pull it over here, we could get in and blow them up easy peasy."

Liara nodded slowly. "That would make things easier. Wait." She glanced over her shoulder at the doors where the other two had disappeared. "Ashley is injured, and Tali is covering her…which means I would be in the gunner's seat."

"Yes."

"I can barely fire a rifle, and you wish to entrust me with a giant cannon?"

Shepard shrugged. "If you miss too much, I'll just run them over."

"Fair point." She sighed. "It can't be any worse than driving the stupid thing." Shepard grinned as she glowed blue, closing her eyes for focus. The Mako shook a little, then slowly rose an inch off the ground and started gliding toward them. A vein started to show on Liara's forehead, and the muscles in her neck looked like they were going to snap. She managed to get the vehicle within a foot of their cover before collapsing, her breath coming in ragged gasps.

Shepard patted her on the back as she recovered her strength. "Nice job. Compared to that, shooting a gun will be child's play, right?"

She held her hands out in front of her, both shaking like leaves in a storm. "I am not too sure about that, but as long as I never have to do that again, sure."

Right as Shepard was about to make a sprint for the Mako, the tank began shaking again. He tensed as it tipped up on two wheels, almost leaving the ground yet again. "They're stealing my idea! The bastards!" However, the wheels crashed down a second later, and a loud stream of curses resounded from somewhere around the hill. He nudged Liara with his shoulder. "Looks like I've got the better biotic."

She returned his smile wanly, still exhausted from her exertions. "You had better, or we are all doomed." He counted down with his fingers before rushing to the vehicle, his hurt leg making it difficult to do so gracefully. He slammed into the side as bullets began flying at him, but he was close enough that the Mako's shields absorbed the incoming fire. He wrenched the passenger door open and crawled over to the driver's seat. Liara followed, squeezing through to the backseat and climbing up behind the cannon.

"You set?"

"Um…"

Shepard rolled his eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Which button shoots the missile?"

"It's the red trigger looking one on the back of the handle."

"Ah." A sound like a generator powering down rang out, much to Shepard's confusion.

"What was that?"

"I think I turned it off."

"You…what?" He looked at his console, and sure enough, he saw the word 'Offline' highlighted over the turret section of the Mako. He also noticed that the machine's shield readings were dropping below 50%. "Oh for fuck's sake." He peeled out, roaring over the terrain at the mercenaries. "I didn't even know it COULD be turned off! Why is that an option?!"

"I don't know. What do I do?"

"Turn it back on!" He barreled into one of the snipers, crunching the merc under the wheels as he sped by the encampment. The others scattered, weaving in and out to make them a harder target, no doubt expecting the menacing looking gun to start trying to pick them off. If only they knew.

Shepard heard a whirring start, and the message went away from his dash. "Great job. Now, it's the RED. TRIGGER." He let out a whoop as plume of dust kicked up from the missile Liara shot out. "Alright! Now aim at the bad guys."

"Shepard, it won't move. I can only point in this direction."

Shepard banged his head on the steering wheel. "I thought you had a Ph.D."

"Not in shooting cannons!" He flung the Mako around, redirecting so the cannon was pointing vaguely in the direction of one of the fleeing mercs.

"Just hold down the button, eventually it might hit him. If not, I'll catch up in a bit." To his surprise, the second shot exploded the person into tiny pieces. As he moved on to the others, the process repeated itself, miraculously ending the enemies within two to three shots. "I cannot believe that worked so well." He parked the Mako next to the entrance again and jumped out, waiting for Liara to extricate herself from the tower. He raised an eyebrow at her as she emerged, to which she shook her head.

"I do not want to hear anything. We would still be stuck in a drawn-out firefight if not for me in any case."

"Fair enough." He let her walk ahead to the bunker, trying not to laugh at the ridiculousness of that stunt. He remembered Ashley's injury and sobered quickly, entering and approaching the other two. Ashley seemed to be doing better, her face recovering some its normal pallor instead of the ashen hue it had been previously.

"Are you alright, Ash?"

She scoffed. "One bullet can't put me down, Shepard. Point the way." She got to her feet slowly, but still managed to stand up, preparing her weapon.

Tali put a hand on Ashley's arm, her voice full of concern. "Are you sure? You didn't look so good coming in here."

Ashley looked like she was going to give a smartass comment, but her face softened when she looked down at Tali. "Yes, I'm sure Tali."

Shepard nodded, walking down the hall. "We need to hurry. They may already be at the scientist."

More bodies lay strewn about, the armor marking them as members of both sides. _Looks like they brought a small army to take this guy out._ They came into a long hallway with several offices along the sides, marked with various names on the doors. Shepard found the one with 'Dr. Wayne' inscribed next to it, along with a pile of corpses. This time, however, no Blue Suns were mixed in with the nameless other group. Puzzled, he also noticed that several of the bodies had entry wounds in the back.

Ashley noticed as well. "You see that?"

"Yeah. Something's not right with this whole mission." Shepard waited for the others to line up behind him as he stood in front of the door. "Go."

He found a man tied down to a chair, blood coating his body. He was still breathing, however, despite the large amount of incisions, burns, and bruises dispersed along his figure. Another man stood behind him, a knife poised at the prisoner's throat.

"Don't move!"

Shepard froze. He knew that voice. He squinted, trying to place the feeling of familiarity. _Wait…_

"Holy shit." Shepard felt like he had been punched in the gut. "Toombs."

Toombs licked his lips, adjusting his grip on the knife. "Sh-Shepard? Is that you?"

* * *

Shepard bolted straight up as a shriek ripped through the silence. The other soldiers in his tent looked around in various states of grogginess and confusion. He made eye contact with Daniels, his old friend from all the way back in basic, but she just shook her head; no one had any idea what was going on. Sporadic bursts of gunfire started coming through, springing them into action. Shepard quickly donned his armor and weapons, disconcerted that no alarm or orders had been sent through the comms.

The ground beneath his feet shook with earthquake force, causing him to trip backwards and fall against the tarp. The earth erupted in a shower of dirt, flinging his bunkmates aside like pieces of grass. A huge beast towered over them, shaking off the tent that covered its head and roaring with a piercing cry, the same they had heard earlier. Its body was covered in serrated edges, and its mouth opened in too many places and had too many teeth. Before anyone could so much as get to their knees, the worm swooped down faster than Shepard thought possible and snatched up one of the sprawled soldiers in its maw, cutting off his screams with a hideous crunch.

Shepard scrambled to his feet, meeting up with Daniels and Ramirez as they fled from the monster. Daniels' eyes were wide with terror as she looked over her shoulder. "What the fuck is that thing?!"

He peppered the back of the thing with his rifle, but it didn't so much as turn in his direction, focusing on eating anyone that hadn't gotten away fast enough. "I have no idea, but we're gonna need something stronger than bullets." He put a hand to his helmet as they took shelter behind a crate of supplies. "This is Shepard, does anyone copy?" No one answered as panicked shouts and gunfire filled the night.

Ramirez put his head between his knees. "I think I'm gonna be sick."

"Pull it together, Ramirez. We need to make our way to the armory; we should have rocket launchers and C4's there. They might do something against these things."

"And if they don't?"

Shepard shrugged. "Does it matter? We have to try. Daniels, tell Anderson we need immediate extraction."

Ramirez cried out in pain, causing Shepard to whip around again, expecting to see one of the worms nearby. Ramirez' screams intensified, and Shepard knelt down next to the writhing man, trying to figure out what was happening. That's when he saw the green substance slowly eating its way through the armor, evaporating flesh almost instantly. As the skin sloughed away, the blood underneath began to boil, and Ramirez started clawing at his exposed chest, trying to get rid of the acid. All that did was start the process on his fingers. The acrid stench entered Shepard's nostrils and filled his lungs, burning like crisp air on a cold day. He watched helplessly as Ramirez stopped struggling, the light leaving his eyes as the goo ate through his ribs and started dissolving his organs. Out of the corner of his eye, Shepard saw the worm spit something in their direction, and he tackled Daniels out of the way. Sure enough, the same corrosive liquid spattered right where they had been standing.

"Move!" Shepard pulled a stunned Daniels to her feet and shoved her forward, heading to the tent that held their only chance for survival. He tried to get other soldiers he ran into to follow him, but they simply ran in terror, getting cut down in their haste to escape by claws, teeth, or acid. He saw Toombs go down as another monster burst from the ground, falling motionless by the still bubbling corpse of Ramirez. _If we worked together, we might be able to take these things._ He knew that his N7 training had exposed him to a far more grueling regimen than anyone here had undergone, but none of them had been prepared for this. Still, he felt equally frustrated and helpless as his fellow soldiers were slaughtered like cattle, wishing someone would listen to him. At least he had Daniels.

They made it to the supply cache, and Shepard started stuffing his pockets with as many explosives as he could find. Daniels did the same, and they both grabbed a couple of rocket launchers before going back to the entrance and surveying the damage. It looked like there were only three of the monsters, but their constant tunneling and reappearances made them seem more numerous. He had no idea how many of their unit of 50 remained, but too many bodies lay on the ground already. The situation seemed hopeless; how could only the two of them take these things out? He steeled his resolve, watching yet another friend get eviscerated. _I will not die like this._

"Their mouths look like a weak point. We need to either shoot them while they are open, or get close enough to throw in the bombs."

Daniels looked at him incredulously. "That might, _might_ , work on one, but how are we going to do that for all three?"

Shepard flinched as a severed hand hit his helmet, leaving behind a streak of blood. Ignoring the grizzly sight, he continued his train of thought. "If we can kill one of the bastards, that might make the others pause long enough for us to make it to the LZ. At this point, we aren't trying to win, we're just trying to survive. I'll let the others know this is our plan, but I doubt anyone will hear it."

Daniels furrowed her brow. "We can't just leave people behind, can we?" Shepard could tell her survival instinct was warring with her sense of duty to her fellow soldiers.

He looked back at the scene of destruction before them. The human cries had diminished, and the sounds of guns had all but disappeared. "I don't think there'll be anyone else to leave behind."

"But there were fifty of us!"

"I know." Dread sat heavy on Shepard's stomach, but he pushed it aside. It had only been a little over five minutes, and already almost everyone was dead. How the worms hadn't noticed them crouching behind the crates yet, he had no idea, but they would have to deal with their losses later; right now, they needed all of their strength put into escaping. He saw Daniels struggling to not freak out, and a couple of deep breaths later, she gave a shaky nod.

"Shit…okay. If anyone can get us through this, it's you."

"Alright." He radioed his plan out to the unit, though no one replied, as expected. He glanced over the crate and saw that two of the fiends had moved a fair distance away, no doubt chasing stragglers, while one remained rather close to their current position, feasting on the bodies. "I'm going to get that one's attention. If it opens its mouth to shoot acid, or roar, or for any reason, shoot it with the rocket launcher. I'll do the same thing. I'll get in close and try to throw in the explosives." He felt his hands shaking, and he tightened his grip; he needed a steady aim. "You ready?"

She gave a more confident nod than before, fire sparking in her eyes. "Let's kill this son of a bitch."

Shepard ran out and waved his arms, shouting like a lunatic. The worm snapped its head to him, emitting a low rumble that was somehow just as intimidating as the full screech. It slowly spread its jaws, and Shepard could see the acid frothing in the back of its throat. "Now!" He dove to the side, hoping to throw off its aim, as a missile connected directly with the thing's tendril-looking tongue. It howled in pain, shaking its head back and forth, giant shudders passing along its body. He covered the distance between them while it was distracted, pulling out two piles of C4's taped together from his stock. _I might have grabbed too many for this_ , he thought, noting how many he still had on him and the entire store Daniels had with her. The worm opened its mouth again, this time looking to snap Shepard up instead of using range, but Daniels stopped it again with another well-placed shot. It bent over, making strange, high-pitched wheezing sounds. Shepard took the opportunity to get right next to the beast, grabbing on to one of its face spikes with one hand and shoving the C4 in with the other. He continued shoveling explosives into the maw, taking advantage of its wounded state. His arm was covered in scrapes and cuts by the end of it, but the worm was too distracted to note the easy chance to sever his limb. _Okay, that's probably enough. I hope._

Just before he let go, the monster reared upright, causing Shepard to cling to its head tightly to avoid being thrown to his death. The worm kept twisting around in Shepard's direction, snapping its jaws in an attempt to rid itself of the nuisance on its face.

"Hey, shit brain!" The worm stopped attacking Shepard and looked at the noise; Daniels had moved forward, wielding her rocket launcher. "That's right, look at me!" She shot a blast into its belly, breaking off one of its clawed appendages. Shepard was jostled around as it bellowed in agony once more; he managed to climb out of reach of its mouth, resting on the back of its head. He fumbled with his pockets, trying to throw the remaining explosives out before activating the detonator.

"Anytime, Shepard!" The monster had recovered and was menacing Daniels once more. As it bared down on her, Shepard yanked out the device and pressed the trigger. He felt a thump resound from the inside of the thing's skull before he was tossed to the ground as it collapsed, striking the earth with an extreme amount of power. He swiftly rose to his feet, ignoring the pain radiating from all over his body; they had a small window now, and he was not going to let it go to waste. A quick glance let him know the others were still preoccupied elsewhere, not having yet noticed their fallen brethren. They had to leave.

He stopped short as he rounded the dead worm's head. Daniels lay sprawled on the ground; her leg was simply missing, cut off halfway above the knee. "Daniels!" He ran to her side, carefully turning her over. Her face was screwed up in pain, and blood was pouring out of her stump. He smeared medigel over the wound in an attempt to seal the flow of red liquid, rousing a cry from her.

"You're going to be okay. I've got you." He placed his arms under her and picked her up, making sure to avoid moving the injury as much as possible. Her grimace deepened, but she held on to his shoulders, forcing down the scream her body was begging her to give. Shepard started jogging to the LZ, focusing on keeping the pace as smooth and quick as possible. Every step made Daniels' face turn a slightly paler shade.

"Come on, stay with me Daniels."

She seemed fixated on something above Shepard. "You're bleeding." As if on cue, a drop of blood fell past his left eye.

He couldn't help but laugh a little. "You lost a leg, and you're worried about a cut?"

She didn't seem to hear him. "Looks like it'll scar over." She slowly closed her eyes. He jostled her roughly, trying to bring her eyelids back up.

"No you don't. Hey." She didn't reply, and he couldn't stop to check on her. The only thing he could do was hope she would make it just a few more minutes.

They rushed through a couple of buildings, arriving at the extraction point. He gently set her down, checking her pulse. Nothing.

"No no no no." He started performing CPR, no doubt bruising a few ribs in the process, but she would forgive him if he brought her back. "We made it! We're here. The ship will be here soon, come on." Two minutes of frantic pumping and exhaling later, nothing had changed. He heard a couple of her ribs snap under his last push. He paused, his hands hovering uselessly as he tried to come up with an idea. "I don't know what to do. I don't…I don't know…"

The realization that he had just lost almost everyone he knew came crashing down on him. The service had been his entire life since he had entered; the people in his unit were as close as family to him. Johnson, Ramirez, Toombs…Daniels. They were all gone. All of them.

He didn't know how long he knelt there, staring at Daniels' lifeless face. Someone gripped his shoulder, picking him up and turning him around. He found Anderson's face looking back at him, his mouth saying things Shepard couldn't understand.

"They're…I…I couldn't…" His voice caught in his throat, tears running down his face as Anderson pulled him into a gruff hug. "I'm the only one left."

* * *

"I saw you die." Shepard was still reeling, memories flooding through his brain. "How are you here?"

Toombs seemed overjoyed at Shepard's presence, and his thoughts tumbled out of his mouth faster than his mind could process them. "They took me Shepard! The scientists! It was all part of their plan. I was-"

"You can't prove any of this." The man in the chair, presumably Dr. Wayne, spoke up, looking at Shepard pleadingly. "This man is clearly delusional. Please, you have to help me!"

"Shut up!" Toombs tightened his grip on Wayne's neck, drawing a thin line of blood across his throat. "You don't get to talk. All I heard was you talking for years while you tortured me, and for what? Huh?"

"Easy, Toombs." Shepard didn't know what was happening, but he needed to hear the whole story, and he couldn't have the target he was sent to rescue killed while he watched, no matter what ghost was performing the execution. "Tell me what happened."

Toombs looked at Shepard again, his eyes eager. "It was a set-up, Shepard. They orchestrated the whole attack with the thresher maws just to watch and learn about them." He swallowed loudly, his agitation increasing. "When I woke up, they…they had me. I was their test subject for years while they performed their fucking experiments on me."

A cold weight pressed itself on Shepard's chest. "I swear Toombs…if I had known…it took us so long to clear out the threshers. I would have come back for you." His breathing shallowed as he fought to keep his emotions under control. "I'm sorry. I know that will never make up for it, but…I'm so sorry."

Toombs almost seemed taken aback by Shepard's apology. His eyes twitched, and his jaw clenched down. He seemingly ignored Shepard's words, charging along with his own train of thought. "This man is part of an organization called Cerberus. They run secret projects like this one, all hush-hush, you know?" A high-pitched laugh bubbled up from his chest. "No one is ever supposed to find out about it and live. But I did. I made it. And I've hunted every single one of the bastards responsible down except for this one."

He grasped Wayne's hair and yanked his head back roughly, exposing his neck even more. "This man deserves to die, Shepard! For you, for me, for everyone we lost on Akuze. He needs to die." Toombs' limbs were trembling, the knife dancing dangerously close to Wayne's jugular. "I need to kill him. I need to. You understand, right Shepard? You were there! You know what they did!"

Shepard held up his hands, still trying to process everything that had just occurred. He didn't know what to think; there was no evidence for Toombs' claims, but now he shows up after six years with a murderous vendetta. Why would he lie? Either way, he needed to placate Toombs before the situation escalated. "I believe you, Toombs. I just want to hear what he has to say about all this."

Toombs slammed Wayne's head onto the table, moving his knife to the side and pointing it under his ear. "Go on, Wayne! Tell them how I was your favorite lab rat! How you always told me what a pleasure it was to see me before injecting me with acid. You spent hours and hours just talking to me, trying to justify what you were doing while tearing me apart. TELL HIM!" White froth was flying out of Toombs' lips near the end of his tirade.

Wayne looked up at Shepard from where his face was smooshed on the table, his eyes still begging Shepard to help. Shepard slowly crouched until he was on eye level with the man. He traced the line on his head where his hair had never quite grown back the same. "You see this scar? I got it on that planet where I watched my fellow soldiers get butchered by those things. I carried my oldest friend with me all the way to the landing zone just to have her die in my arms. So you can understand if my friend's claims here upset me a little." Every muscle in his body was perfectly relaxed, his face impassive, but his eyes could have drilled holes in steel. "Did you kill my friends?"

He never quite understood why, but he knew his stare could draw honest answers from almost anyone. Wayne hesitated, nervously glancing between Shepard and his squad, before finally closing his eyes. "Yes."

Shepard nodded, ice flooding through his veins. He stood back up, calmly glancing at Toombs. "You say you've killed the others?"

Toombs nodded excitedly. "They died screaming."

"Alright." Shepard let out a breath, cleansing himself of the emotions raging in his head. "Toombs, you can't kill him."

Toombs looked at him incredulously. "What do you mean? He has to die, Shepard!"

"We need him." Shepard felt the bile in his throat rise at what he was saying. "If there is to be any justice for Akuze, we need him alive to testify."

"No!" Toombs violently shook his head, his knuckles whitening on the hilt. "You don't get to make that call. You got away with a scary reputation and a few scratches. I…I will never be the same. I'm not whole. All because of them."

"We are better than them." Shepard looked at him sadly. "Don't you see? If you kill him, there will be no one to back up your story. You'll be imprisoned for murder. This is the only way to help you."

"I don't NEED help. I need revenge." Toombs drove the knife into Wayne's shoulder, drawing it back out and placing it next to his neck again. "I don't care what happens to me."

"I do." Shepard eased his way around the table, keeping a safe distance between them but approaching the man. "Please, let me help you, Toombs. I will make sure he pays for his crimes; I swear it."

Toombs drew shaky circles in Wayne's skin with his blade. He flitted back and forth between Shepard and Wayne, a snarl forming on his mouth. _He's not going to listen. I can't blame him; I doubt I would listen either._ Suddenly, he stepped away from his victim, letting the knife fall to the ground with a small clang. "Okay."

Shepard moved forward, placing a hand on Toombs' shoulder. "You did the right thing. I'll make sure this is dealt with personally." Toombs didn't respond, seemingly going into a catatonic state and focusing on something miles away. Shepard went to Wayne and grasped the back of his neck to pull him to his feet. He smashed his face into the table a couple of times, splattering his nose on the metal, before slicing through his bonds and yanking him up, shoving him to the exit. "Just so you know, if you don't corroborate Toombs' story, you will wish I had let him finish the job by the time I'm done with you." He jerked his head at the others. "Let's go. You need to see Dr. Chakwas, Williams. Make sure Toombs follows, but be careful; he's been through a lot." He saw his squad looking at him with equal amounts of horror and pity and pointedly avoided their gazes; he hated that look.

* * *

Shepard stared at his knees as he finished his story. Tali was sitting next to him, her hand enveloping his. Just as he had told her about Mindoir, he decided to recount his claim to fame on Akuze. Considering how personal the last mission had gotten, he wanted her to understand everything that had happened. He also needed to share it with someone, or the newly reopened wounds would smother him until he marched down to the brig and shot Wayne in the head.

"Shepard…I read the story, of course, but I had no idea. I'm sorry."

"Don't be. I hate pity." He looked into her silver eyes, finding solace in their pale light. "I just wanted to tell you everything. It helps, you know. Telling you. I don't know why, but it does."

He could tell she was smiling at him, the way her eyes crinkled up slightly at the sides. "Well, whenever you need me, I'm here." He embraced her, pulling her tight and finding comfort in her small frame. He loved these moments they got to spend alone. He had never found anyone he felt as contented with as Tali. He couldn't explain why; he could list off dozens of reasons for his attraction to her, both physically and emotionally, but there was simply something between them that escaped definition.

"Sorry to interrupt the canoodling session Commander, but it's the Council. They say they have a possible lead on Saren."

Shepard rolled his eyes. "Thanks Joker."

"You got it boss."


	20. Chapter 20: Incurable

**Hey everyone! We have now officially arrived at Virmire. I can't thank you enough for the support you have shown. You have pushed me to continue writing every day, and I love it. Your encouragement means so much to me. Anyway, enough about that; on to the chapter!**

* * *

The smooth metal of the gun was marred by tiny chips and scratches from the numerous engagements it had survived. Tali traced a particularly deep groove along the stock, a gift from her vent adventure on Noveria. _No one is going to believe me when I get back; I'm not even sure I believe it._ She doubted there were many other quarians who had seen as much combat as she had by this point, which was insane to think about.

They finally had something to chase down concerning Saren for the first time in a long time. A salarian task force had been investigating reports of a base on Virmire when radio chatter ceased. Since Saren was the primary focus of said task force, the Council had directed the Normandy to survey the incident and determine what had happened to the salarians.

After a brief stop on the Citadel to deliver Toombs and Wayne over to the authorities, they immediately sped off to the Hoc system. When they were around ten minutes out, Tali had wandered down to the cargo bay, inspecting her equipment while waiting for their arrival. She was sitting on a crate next to Ashley's normal area, though both had been too busy in their own thoughts for conversation.

Ashley glanced over at her. "You know, we have another Katana shotgun in storage. Yours is looking pretty beat up."

"Thanks, but I'll keep this one. It's gotten me this far. I feel like if I switched it out, we'd have bad luck or something." She shifted her shoulders. "I mean, I don't really believe in luck, but still."

"I get it." The soldier leaned against her workspace, aimlessly looking around the hangar. "I don't know why, but something feels…off. Like that feeling you get on a pretty day right before it starts storming."

"Well, there is supposed to be inclement weather when we land. Also, I've never had that feeling." Ashley snorted, smiling slightly at Tali's nonchalance.

"Since when did you get such a sense of humor? I remember when you could barely string a full sentence together."

Tali blushed. "I don't know. I guess you guys are rubbing off on me."

"It's nothing to be ashamed of." Ashley's face became serious, worry lines creasing on her forehead. "Stay safe out there today, okay?"

"Of course. You too."

The elevator door opened, and Shepard stepped out in full gear. Tali straightened up, meeting him by the Mako with Garrus and Wrex. The last couple of days had been rough on him; the circles under his eyes looked like bruises, and Tali knew from their late-night talks how little he had slept recently. Still, he gave her a small smile before starting the briefing.

"We've pinpointed the location of the signal, but Joker is also picking up some AA guns. We'll need to go down in the Mako and clear them out before he can bring the Normandy to aid. He'll get us in under the radar, and we'll do the rest." Tali moved to the other side and climbed into her usual spot, connecting to the tank and preparing the interfaces she thought they might need.

"Coming in close, Commander. Dropping in 3...2…1…" They launched out of the Normandy, though the sensation of falling only lasted for a couple of seconds before they splashed into a shallow area of beach. The sheer cliffs appeared orange in the fading light, their jagged edges facing the sea and defiantly halting the water's progress inland. A peal of thunder brought Tali's attention back to the ocean; a swirling mass of dark clouds had accumulated a couple miles off the coast. The vast expanse of water took her breath away. The way the sun shimmered behind the ominous storm, its rays dancing along with the lightning on the surface: she had never seen anything more beautiful.

"Tali, can you find where exactly the tower is?"

She blinked a few times, her mind slowly coming back to the mission. "Right. Sorry. I'll transfer the coordinates to everyone once I've got it." As usual, she quickly obtained the data she was looking for and made good on her promise.

Shepard revved the engine and sped off, navigating between the piles of rock. The water maintained a relatively even depth throughout the drive instead of tapering away to sand. Tali's sensors blared suddenly, which could only mean one thing.

"Geth. Seven units up ahead around this corner."

Shepard grinned. "That's good."

Garrus' voice came rumbling in his normal, dry tone from the gunner's seat. "Ah yes, the presence of homicidal robots always brings me joy too."

"They should." The Commander skidded around the turn, using the water to drift neatly into line of sight on the geth. "If the geth are here, then we are in the right place. Saren is involved somehow. You can fire at any time, by the way."

"Just being polite." The cannon roared, turning two of the machines into scraps of metal. Without any large artillery to back them up, the ground units quickly fell under the Mako's superior firepower. Tali could tell Shepard was a little disappointed as they moved on by the small crease in his brow.

"Was that too easy for you, Shepard?"

He shrugged. "It's no fun when we're the ones with the advantage for once. I didn't even have to jump one rocket."

She patted him with fake sympathy. "I'm sure we'll be shot at plenty before this is over."

They approached the small building that contained the controls to the anti-aircraft guns. As they rolled to a stop, the lack of resistance was disconcerting. Despite being at the heart of one of the geth outposts, not a single geth unit was in sight. Shepard quirked a questioning eyebrow at Tali, but she shook her head. "Something is jamming my sensors. I can't tell if anything is near us."

Wrex opened a door and leaned out, scanning their surroundings with a critical eye. "This is definitely a trap." He looked at Shepard with his toothy grin. "I can be bait if you want."

"That's alright Wrex. We'll leave Garrus here in the Mako to provide support while the rest of us go disable the turrets." Shepard climbed out, and Tali followed suit. Her feet sank into the ankle-deep water, disturbing a little patch of sand. She had walked on sand before, of course, but the feeling of her toes settling in the squishy floor was quite unique. She took a moment to twist a foot deeper into the ground, giggling a little at the tickling sensation as her foot disappeared from sight.

Shepard's arms wrapped around her from behind, drawing her close as he whispered in her ear. "You are adorable, you know."

Heat flooded Tali's face, and her mind emptied itself of any responses. She still wasn't used to him acting this way around her. "Oh. Hi."

Wrex growled. "I really need to shoot something. Any more of that, and I might settle for you two."

Shepard winked at Wrex, letting Tali go and trudging through the surf to the nearby stairs. Wrex watched as Tali pulled her shotgun from her back, extending it from its compact mode. "Is that the same gun from Feros?"

Tali nodded. Wrex frowned, his scars adding to the unpleasant look. "You should get a new one. Who knows how long it's been in use before you got it. A malfunction would be…bad."

She caressed the weapon. "I might, but you see, it was a gift from a friend. I couldn't just get rid of it." She smiled at him. For a split second, she thought she saw a small glimmer in his eye, but then he blinked and it was gone. He shook his head, muttering something about 'sentimental bullshit' before following Shepard.

Tali had reached the final stair in the climb when the geth attacked. A colossus poked its head out from atop a cliff, its head glowing as it charged up a shot. _Uh oh._ Tali slid herself deeper into the building, putting the ceiling between her and the colossus. She found herself flanked by two troopers, both of whom had been waiting for someone to pass through the doorway she had just entered. Fortunately, they had been aiming at chest level, so their initial shots were far above her seated form. She blew out one's leg and kicked the other in the chest as she rose, using the motion to drive the geth into the wall. Holding it there, she destroyed its head with a single shot before turning and finishing off the other, crippled machine. She removed her foot, letting the unit drop lifelessly to the ground.

She saw a console at the back of the room and ran to it, drawing up a list of commands. She deactivated the guns before permanently disabling the console with a shotgun shell. Satisfied with her handiwork, she returned to the sound of gunfire to aid her friends. However, the last geth was enveloped in biotic energy and smashed into a wall as she passed through the entrance, its warble slowly dying down. Garrus had dispatched the heavy units outside, though it looked as if the Mako had taken a couple of hits. Shepard brushed off flecks of geth from his arm and made to go farther in. "Just gotta turn these off and-"

"Already done." Shepard gave her a look. "What, you guys can handle yourselves."

"I told you this was a trap."

Shepard gave Wrex the same look he gave Tali. "I think we all knew this was a trap, buddy." He radioed Joker. "The guns are down. You're clear to come in."

"Roger that." Tali heard the Normandy's engines as it flew just overhead, skimming the rocks and turning farther down the coast. _That is so much louder on the outside._

As they returned to the Mako, Joker came over the radio once more. "Uh guys…we made it to the salarians. But we're grounded. The captain can explain more once you get here."

"Wow. I haven't been grounded in twenty years." Shepard glanced around the small cabin, taking in the alien faces that stared back at him blankly. "Never mind."

* * *

Tali watched Wrex as he shot another shell into the water, flinching at the sound despite knowing it was coming. He paced an angry line into the beach, his body eminating all the pent-up rage hidden behind his inscrutable expression. She may have been wary of the krogan when they first met, but after all the time they had spent together, she had never been frightened of him. She respected his combat abilities, certainly, but fear was not an emotion she felt when she looked at the battle-hardened warrior. Not until now.

She understood his anger. _A cure for the Genophage…if I discovered someone had the ability to return my people to Rannoch and was told I had to destroy it, I don't know what I would do._ This cure would change the fate of his entire species. The problem was, Saren controlled it. The krogan would simply be pawns in his larger plan to let the Reapers eradicate all life in the galaxy, krogan included.

A crunch in the sand diverted her thoughts. Shepard had quietly joined her, looking on as Wrex took another shot at some native birds. "I don't know how to approach this, Tali."

"He's a friend. Friends don't give up on each other." She took a deep breath, trying to stop her racing pulse as she made her body move toward Wrex, taking one of Shepard's hands and pulling him along. "Come on. Let's just talk to him."

"No." Shepard stepped in front of her, stopping her in her tracks. "If this goes south…I don't want you near it."

She forcefully poked a finger into his chest, pushing him back slightly. "That is called giving up on him. You can do the talking, but I'm going with you."

He smiled at her as he rubbed his sternum, nodding in assent. "Yes ma'am."

Wrex ignored them when they first walked up, lining up one more shot at the wildlife. He snorted when none of the bullets hit and the creatures flew away unharmed. He eventually turned to face them, closing the gap to an uncomfortably close distance which emphasized just how big the krogan was. Tali thought he might be twice her height if he stood up straight; she gulped, standing her ground through sheer willpower.

"What are we doing here, Shepard?" Wrex' impassive face made his tone all the more threatening.

Shepard seemed unfazed, looking up at the krogan as though they were on equal footing. "We have to stop Saren."

"Do we? And why is that, exactly? Saren created a cure for my people, while you want to destroy it." A grimace creased his craggy visage. "Help me out here, Shepard. I thought we were the good guys in all this."

"That is not what Saren did, and you know it. He's using this cure, if that even is what is in there, to manipulate your people. He will use them until they bring about the destruction of everything, themselves included. I'm sorry, Wrex. I really am. But he has to be stopped."

Wrex slowly stepped back, putting a couple of feet between them. "I've followed you so far. Hell, you've done more for me than my family ever did. Not that that's saying much." Tali blinked, and suddenly Wrex had his shotgun pointed at Shepard. "But I don't know if I can follow you down this road."

Tali let out an involuntary gasp, instinctively reaching in front of Shepard before remaining where she was. She knew there was nothing she could do if Wrex wanted to kill him, not before he got the shot off, so she stilled herself and started praying to the ancestors. Wrex' eyes flickered over to her for a moment before returning to Shepard.

Shepard did not reach for his own weapons. Instead, he slowly walked straight to the krogan and pressed the barrel into his head. "If you're going to shoot, then do it. But that won't solve anything, and you know it. You know I'm right, Wrex. You just have to trust me." Shepard waited while the krogan stared at the crazy human, both of them as still as statues.

Tali's hands were wringing themselves to death, and she took a single step towards the krogan. "Please," was all she said. Wrex stayed put for a few more seconds, his mouth rippling as he let out a low growl. Finally, he smirked, lowering his gun and shaking his head.

"You are the craziest son of a bitch I've ever met, Shepard. And I've met me. I don't like it, but I'll trust you."

As Wrex moved to holster his gun, a single shot ripped through the air, tearing into the krogan's chest. Wrex looked over Tali's shoulder, shock written on his face, before collapsing into the sand. "Wrex!" Shepard knelt down by him, no doubt applying medigel to the wound. Tali spun around, searching for signs of a geth intruder; all she saw was Ashley, standing a couple dozen feet away with a smoking sniper rifle in her hands.

"What did you do, Ashley?" Tali moved between her and Wrex, making their eyes meet. "Why?"

"He was going to shoot the Commander. I saw him pulling the gun back up; I had to take the shot." Tali could see the horror slowly creeping its way up Ashley's face. "He…he was about to shoot, right?"

"No. No, he wasn't." Tali couldn't deal with Ashley right then; she needed to make sure Wrex was alright. Shepard called for someone to fetch Chakwas while she ran over to them. The hole in his chest was leaking orange fluid, and it seemed big enough to place her entire fist in. "Hey there. You're going to be fine, right?" She winced as he coughed up more blood, the liquid oozing out between his teeth. "You're a krogan. You have multiple hearts in case one fails. One shot can't kill you." She felt tears welling up behind her eyes. "It…it can't. We just stopped this mess from happening. You can't die."

Wrex tried to reply, but the only thing that came out was an unintelligible gurgle. The effort spewed a few drops of blood onto Tali's visor, leaving small smudges that obscured her vision. He took Tali's hand, grunting with the effort, and strained to speak once more. "Don't…die…o-okay?"

"I won't. But you have to make it too." His eyes rolled back in his head, and his grasp went limp in hers.

"No no no no." She let his arm fall and grabbed his head, keeping it from lying at that awkward angle. "Come on. Stay with us." She looked at Shepard, who was still busy doing what he could to stop the bleeding from the injury. The sobs started coming out as she looked back at the big mercenary's sagging face. "Wrex…"

Wrex' eyes popped open, and he looked at Tali with irritation. "You ruined it." She jumped, startled by his sudden speech, and his unsupported head banged against the back of his armor. "Ow."

Tali just stared at him, not understanding how he had made such a miraculous recovery. Wrex spit out some more blood onto the sand, clearing his mouth so he could speak more clearly. "I've had worse without medical treatment. I'll be fine. Plenty of backup organs, like you said." His voice sounded completely unimpeded, unrecognizable from his earlier death rasps.

"But if you're fine, then why did you-"

"I really am hurt. I wasn't faking earlier; I think at least one of my lungs is gone. We krogan heal fast, though. Plus, a dramatic death might have made Shepard change his mind about the cure." Shepard glared at him, to which he just shrugged. "Hey, it was worth a shot."

"Did you just make a pun out of almost dying?" Shepard asked.

"Huh. Guess I did." He wheezed out a laugh, his voice still rough with fluid. "Then you started crying. Felt wrong letting you go on like that."

Tali punched his arm. "It better have felt wrong!" She leaned down and hugged his head. "I'm so glad you're okay."

"Yeah, yeah." Wrex looked uncomfortable as she pulled away, and not because of the bullet. He craned his head forward, looking over his armor at Ashley. His eyes narrowed. "I'm gonna kill her."

"Hey. No." Shepard sternly faced down the prone Wrex. "No killing each other. Understood?" Wrex weakly gestured in Ashley's direction, accusation written on his face. "I know, and I will deal with that. Are you sure you're going to be alright?"

Wrex nodded. "I'm already feeling better. Probably shouldn't join the battle, though." His head flopped back down. "Damnit."

Chakwas arrived, shooing Shepard and Tali away so she could get to work. Shepard stormed over to Ashley, his eyes screaming murder. "What the FUCK were you thinking, Williams?!"

"I-"

"That's right, you weren't." Spit was flying out of Shepard's mouth. "You couldn't have possibly been thinking when you shot your comrade-in-arms because if you were, I would have you stripped of your rank and discharged for conduct unbecoming, am I clear? AM. I. CLEAR." Ashley nodded silently. "Good. Now get over there and help Chakwas with anything she needs." She scrambled over to the doctor, not wasting a moment for Shepard to possibly change his mind about his threats. Shepard sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his fingers.

"That was exciting." Tali crossed her arms, listening to the crash of the waves. "We haven't even gotten near the base and I already feel like this should be the end of a mission or something."

"No kidding." Shepard placed a hand on her back, drawing her close as they both looked out over the water. "But we'll get through it. We always do."

"Thanks to you." She leaned against his shoulder. "When you walked up to Wrex, with that gun pointed at you…well, you're officially the bravest person I know." She smiled. "You're a hero."

Shepard chuckled. "I'm no hero. I'm just a soldier."

Tali looked up into his eyes. "You are definitely a hero. My hero." She curled her arm around him, content to just stand there and enjoy the view for a while. She could see Captain Kirrahe pointedly standing in her line of sight, impatiently tapping his foot in the sand. She didn't care; she thought she'd just lost a friend. The battle could wait five more minutes while she caught her breath.


	21. Chapter 21: Infiltration

**Hey everyone! Sorry for not posting last week; I found myself with very little time to devote to writing. However, to make up for it, I plan on putting out two more chapters by next Friday so everything is back on schedule. Thank you for your patience! Also I apologize for the Wrex scare, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity. Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Captain Kirrahe looked at them with disapproval, though that may have just been his normal expression. Wrex was being treated in the Normandy's medical bay; Chakwas said he should be fine after a couple of days, though he insisted he'd be battle ready in under an hour. Everyone except Ashley had gathered in close to discuss their plan of attack. She stood a little apart from everyone else, still in earshot but not participating.

"We don't have enough troops to take the fort by force. However, we cannot allow Saren to continue his production of a krogan army. His stronghold must be eliminated."

"So where does that leave us?" Shepard leaned over the table, examining Kirrahe's map of the area. "How are we going to take the base? Even if we manage to sneak in, we'll still have to contend with the bulk of the army at one point or another."

"I have a plan." Kirrahe put a hand under his chin. "We can create a makeshift bomb from our ship's drive system, but we'll need the AA guns to be disabled in order to use it. Your ship will have to carry it; its size prevents ground transport from being feasible."

Kaidan squinted at the map, pointing at the outline of the base. "This is a really big facility. Will one bomb be enough to bring it down?"

Kirrahe smirked. "Once converted, the drive system will be the equivalent of a twenty-kiloton ordinance. It will be sufficient."

Shepard nodded. "Okay, so we infiltrate the base, disable the guns, exfil and drop the nuke from orbit."

"Unfortunately, the facility's defenses will require a manual placement of the bomb inside the structure."

"Of course it does." Shepard shook his head. "How do we get in?"

"We don't. You do. I will split my team and lead a frontal assault, distracting Saren's army and drawing them to my position, while you and your squad enter from the other direction." Kirrahe's eyes were hard and emotionless, even though Tali knew his suggestion was paramount to suicide for most of his command.

Shepard rubbed his jaw, knowing the fate most likely in store for the salarians. "Are you sure, Captain? This is quite a risky plan, especially for you. Your men will be slaughtered."

"We aren't so easy to kill. But yes, I do not expect many of us will survive. This was our mission. We must finish it, by any means necessary." Kirrahe met Shepard's gaze. "I am afraid I must ask one of your people to accompany us, to coordinate the teams."

"I'll do it." Ashley entered the circle around the table, her face set.

Kaidan's brow furrowed. "There's no need, Chief. I volunteer."

"They'll need you to arm the nuke once the Normandy gets in. I can handle it, LT."

"With all due respect, it's not your place to decide."

Ashley's eyes glared venomously at Kaidan, but she swallowed back her angry retort. "You're right. It's not yours, either." She turned to Shepard. "Please. If someone should go with the salarians, it should be me. I put the mission in jeopardy; let me make up for it."

Shepard's mouth turned up slightly. "I haven't even said yes yet." He gave Kirrahe a nod when the salarian opened his mouth to speak. "I understand, and I will send someone with you."

"Thank you, Commander." Kirrahe took a step back from the table, his posture unerringly formal. "If you will excuse me, I must go prepare my men." Kirrahe left the tent, the flaps closing behind him.

Shepard took a moment to size up Kaidan and Ashley. His eyes flitted back and forth between them, and he chewed his lip. Both Kaidan and Ashley stood silently, waiting for Shepard's decision. He walked up to Ashley and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Ash, you'll accompany the captain. But no heroics, understood? It's not because of what happened earlier. I am not leaving anyone behind today, so you keep yourself alive."

"Yes sir." She gave him a salute. "I won't let you down."

"I know."

She looked at Kaidan, who was clearly upset by Shepard's verdict. "Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone LT."

"That sounds suspiciously like an order Chief." Kaidan's smile didn't reach his eyes, worry weighing heavy on his brow. "We'll be fine. You'll see. All of us."

"Yeah, I just…yeah." She gave him a friendly punch on the shoulder. "We'll get a drink after this. Person with the least kills is buying."

"You don't have the money to back that up, Williams."

"Cocky son of a bitch." She lightly kicked the sand, sending a small spray up into the air. "See you guys on the other side." Before anyone else could attempt to say a farewell, she exited the tent, trudging over to the supply tent. Kirrahe's voice filtered in from outside, though Tali couldn't quite hear what he was saying. No doubt he was informing his troops of their mission; she didn't begrudge him the unenviable task of delivering that news.

"Who's going with you, Commander?" Kaidan looked at Shepard expectantly.

"I'm sorry, Kaidan. You have to stay behind and prepare yourself on the nuke."

"But-"

"No but's." Shepard glanced around the tent. "Which, with Wrex and Ashley preoccupied, leaves Garrus, Tali, and Liara." Kaidan crossed his arms but didn't say anything else. "I'll be counting on all of you. That includes you, Lieutenant. This may be our only chance to stop Saren. The fate of everything and everyone might be decided in the next few hours. No pressure." There was a collective snort. "I want you to know that I wouldn't rather have anyone else fighting this battle with me than this group of people right here. We are the fiercest warriors the galaxy has ever seen. And we are going to kick Saren's ass."

Tali felt her confidence surge as she looked at the people she had fought and bled beside for the last few months. Shepard was right; nothing was going to stop them.

"Get ready if you're not. We're leaving in five." Everyone already had their gear equipped, so they followed Shepard to where Kirrahe was addressing his men. Kaidan split off to oversee the bomb's transfer into the Normandy's cargo bay. Tali noticed how slumped and tired most of the salarians appeared. Kirrahe was pacing a line into the sand, his hands clasped smartly behind his back as he spoke to his men.

"…Glory in battle is not our way. Think of our heroes, the Silent Step who defeated a nation with a single shot. Or the Ever Alert, who kept armies at bay with hidden facts. These giants do not seem to give us solace here." A couple of the soldiers nodded, almost looking more downtrodden then before. "But they are not all that we are. Before the network, there was the fleet. Before diplomacy, there were soldiers." Kirrahe's voice changed tone, containing more passion and emotion in that last sentence than Tali thought the salarian was capable of possessing. Those that had been staring off somewhere else focused their attention on their captain.

"Our influence stopped the rachni, but before that, we held the line. Our influence stopped the krogan, but before that, we held the line!" The backs of the troops straightened, and pride replaced the despair so evident a few seconds before. Grips tightened on weapons, and determination emanated from the group gathered on the beach. Kirrahe reached full volume, bellowing now as he pointed behind him towards Saren's base. "Our influence will stop Saren! In the battle today, WE WILL HOLD THE LINE!" The salarians snapped to attention, saluting Kirrahe in unison. There were no cries or cheers to accompany the speech, but the effect it had was palpable.

"I think he beat you on the rousing words front," Garrus whispered to Shepard.

"Yeah, well, good for him. He probably had that rehearsed."

Kirrahe turned to Shepard, maintaining his rigid posture. "Good luck, Commander. I hope we will meet again."

"You as well." Kirrahe motioned for the agents to follow as he marched along the water away from camp. Ashley passed them, giving one last wan smile and a wave as she joined the STG force.

Shepard let out his breath slowly, watching the figures disappear around a cliff. "Whew. We need to lighten the mood. Time to go kill some geth." Shepard started walking in the opposite direction.

"And that will lighten the mood?" Garrus asked as he fell in beside Shepard.

"It lightens Tali's mood."

"Ha ha." _He's not wrong._

* * *

Ashley came in over the radio, gunshots audible in the background. "Hostiles engaged. They know we're here. You should be clear to advance."

"Roger that." Shepard peered through the bushes they were hiding in, sizing up the geth outpost in front of them. "Tali, do you know what they could be guarding?"

"Actually, I think so." Her eyes flickered quickly through the data on her omnitool. "It looks like it's connected to their communications relay. If we can take that out, it will be much harder for them to coordinate attacks."

"Easier for sneaking in and easier for the assault team. Seems like we shouldn't just bypass it, then." Garrus steadied his rifle on an upraised root, scoping in to the outpost. "I can see three units from here."

"If we attack them, won't the others know our plan then?" Liara asked, shifting closer to Tali in an attempt to gain a better view.

"I can help with that." Tali started typing away. "I can flood their transmissions with garbage data for the next few minutes. Once the relay goes down, the others will likely think it was part of that process. After that, the geth will only be able to communicate over a very short range." _Probably._

"Do it as soon as Garrus takes his first shot. Garrus, wait for us to get into position. I'll let you know when." Shepard moved down to the stream of water next to them. "Tali, Liara, you should be able to get in fairly close following the trees. Keep your heads down and you'll be fine."

"Where are you going?"

Shepard grinned. "For a swim." He submerged himself in the water and was gone in a blink. The current stirred up the sand and kept the stream fairly murky, and Tali lost track of him after a couple of feet of movement. The stream ran directly under the geth facility, which would give Shepard a great position.

"Alright then. I guess we're going with the trees." Tali led the way through the foliage, creeping from cover to cover. She knew the purple on her outfit stuck out like a sore thumb in the lush, green environment, but the geth seemed to be mostly focused in the other direction. They made their way uneventfully within thirty feet of the stairs, but an empty clearing made them halt there. Tali looked for Shepard, but all she saw was the water flowing normally without any Shepard-shaped interruptions. _It's been at least a minute…where is he?_ Liara and Tali shared a look, but they knew the other didn't have any answers.

Just when Tali started to worry he had struck his head on a rock and drowned, she saw him fluidly crawl out of the stream. He slowly made his way to one of the supporting beams and crawled up, disappearing from view behind the outpost. Tali waited tensely for the sound of fighting to break out, ready to sprint for the stairs the moment something seemed amiss. She heard Shepard speak barely above a whisper over the radio. "Garrus. Now."

The geth standing at the top of the stairs jerked violently, its headless corpse fumbling sadly down the steps. A small explosion ripped through the side of the wall, and a geth leg protruded from the crack, hanging uselessly. Tali was halfway to the facility before she remembered she still needed to run her program. _Uh oh._ She stopped, causing Liara to crash into her back. The asari looked at her strangely, but Tali was too busy with her omnitool. _Come on come on come on…there._ She hoped she hadn't been too late; they needed to get as close as possible to the fortress before the geth discovered team 'Shadow'.

Liara picked up a geth with a blue glow and smashed it down into the stairs. The force of the blow broke the steel structure, buckling the metal like butter. The geth fared no better, warping into the steps and mangling almost beyond recognition. Tali half expected Liara to look remorseful, but she gave a small laugh instead. "I think I am getting the hang of this."

"You're a little scary." Tali surveyed the damage. "I guess Shepard is on his own for now."

"Oh, you are right. I apologize."

"From the silence, I think he's finished in any case." Sure enough, Shepard appeared on the platform above them. He looked at the wreckage, shock written on his face.

"What happened to the stairs?"

"I, um, might have been a little overzealous."

Shepard laughed. "I wish I could do that by being a 'little overzealous'." He rubbed the back of his neck, looking rather sheepish. "So Tali…if the terminal, say, got destroyed in an explosion, would that work? Or did I fuck up?"

Tali sighed. "Yes, that should do the job. But try not to just blow up things in the future without knowing what will happen?"

"You got it."

"Uh huh." He hopped off the platform, splashing into the water. Garrus rejoined them as they moved on, trekking through the maze of cliffs, rivers, and forest. They encountered a few geth patrols on their way but managed to remain undetected as they pressed forward. Eventually, the top of the fortress became visible in the distance, the lower portions hidden behind the scenery.

While they traveled, Tali made sure to be on the lookout for anything useful to hack as well as any sign the geth knew they were coming. By the time they reached the outer wall, she had grounded their drones, disrupted their missile lock-on system, and disabled their satellite uplinks. She smiled to herself when Ashley reported a surprising lack of resistance on their approach. She didn't feel the need to inform the others of her actions; she had never been one to seek attention.

A sizeable force was garrisoned in front of the entrance, though there were likely much less than there would have been without the assault team. Garrus carefully scaled a small tree, hiding most of his form behind the thick leaves. The barrel of his gun poked out a few inches, one of the only signs Tali could see that he existed, and she was standing directly underneath him. "Cool," she murmured, amazed that so little of his bright blue armor was visible.

They crept through the brush as close as they could get, but it was still far short of the effective range of her shotgun when their line of cover ended. Shepard held up a hand, counting down with his fingers. When it reformed into a fist, Tali's ears rang with the roar of Garrus' rifle. Shepard and Liara charged out to the landing while she remained behind, focusing on the technical side of the battle. A destroyer was incapacitated by an arc of lightning originating from its weapon, and a rocket trooper helpfully decided to eliminate the other geth artillery in a blaze of glory. _There. Now we should be able to advance._

A flash of pain seared up from her spine. She fell into the muddy grass, her arms barely coming up in time to stop her face from smacking into the ground. Another strike knocked the breath from her body, flipping her over onto her back. As she struggled to regain the air she lost, her eyes took in the large krogan standing over her. He reached down and picked her up by the throat, hoisting her up so her feet couldn't touch the ground. She kicked furiously, scoring dents in his armor, but he just laughed in her face. He squeezed with enough force to break bone.

She would have laughed at his confused expression if laughter were possible in her current predicament. One of the most well protected areas of a quarian suit was the neck. Instead of crushing her esophagus, the krogan found himself pushing against steel rings. Using his arms as leverage, she curled her body up and thrust a foot into his face. She felt one of her toes jam as it sunk into something. The fingers released, letting her fall back to the ground. Her arms brushed around frantically trying to find her gun as the krogan reeled back clutching his face. Her hand closed around the stock.

The gun almost flew out of her hands as she shot it from the hip, turning the krogan's crotch into mush. As he collapsed to his knees, she got to her feet, pressed the barrel to his head, and pulled the trigger. She took a moment to regain her stamina, looking at the mess in front of her. _That's what you get for not just shooting me._ The remains of an eyeball were smeared across her toe. She quickly wiped it on the grass and ran over to help her friends.

The next few minutes were a blur. The constant bark of gunfire left her nearly deafened until she turned down her audio sensors. Then she was actually deafened. She fell into a cycle, shooting at the geth until her shields failed and waiting behind cover for them to recharge. She found it strange that she could remember practically every detail of her struggle with the krogan, down to the small scar that ran across his cheek, but with these prolonged fights she became zombielike. When she had a set course of action to take with little relative risk, it was almost…boring. _I can't believe I can call this boring._

After the battle concluded in their favor, to no one's surprise except perhaps the geth, they formed up and prepared to enter the facility. Tali's sensors picked up on a security alarm attached to the doors.

"Shepard, there is an intruder alarm. If we enter, the geth will know where we are."

"Can you disable it?"

"Not quite." She inspected the device more closely, drawing up various information on the system on her omnitool. "The trigger will go off no matter what, but I can trick the system into thinking the intruders are elsewhere."

Shepard frowned. "Won't that draw more fire to the other teams?"

"Only if I sent them to the front entrance. What if I just…" she trailed off, tapping a few keys. "Okay. Now they should discover a surprise disturbance on the west end of the fortress, far away from both us and the salarians."

Garrus cocked his head to one side. "So how hard was it to mess with this security?"

"Well, since geth are artificial intelligences, naturally their software is extremely robust. But, once you know a way in, it's fairly simple to replicate. Why?"

"Just wondering how it compares with Citadel security."

Tali snorted involuntarily, drawing a cool gaze from Garrus. "Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to be offensive. Citadel security is…more flawed than, um, other systems. Some of their encryption schemes are decades old, which is a very long time ago concerning software."

"I see."

"Mmhmm."

"Have you ever hacked C-Sec?"

Tali ignored his question, turning to Shepard. "Ready to go?"

He grinned at her awkward avoidance of Garrus' stare. "I think that answers it for you, Garrus."

"Yep."


	22. Chapter 22: Indoctrination

**Hey guys! As promised, here's another chapter early in the week. I always find it so difficult to write the sections of scripted dialogue. This should be the last chapter before the fateful decision! I've changed my mind so many times about how this mission is going to play out, so we'll see what ends up happening. I've said enough; enjoy!**

* * *

Tali was surprised to see anyone when they stepped into the room, considering her false alarm, but she was more surprised to see salarians. Shepard lowered his rifle. "How did you-"

The closest salarian jerked up, causing her to jump. His pupils were huge, swallowing up the entirety of his eyeball. "Get out get out get out GET OUT!" They ran at the squad, arms mixed between clutching at their heads and stretching towards their targets.

They went down easily. They didn't possess any shields or firearms, and salarians don't have the strongest constitutions. Once the last one fell, Liara bent down and inspected the bodies. "I do not understand. Does Saren have salarians working for him now?"

"It's not beyond the realm of possibility. But did you see these guys? They were crazy." Shepard pointed at one of the sleeves. "And look here. STG. Maybe Kirrahe's men?"

"Maybe." Garrus shrugged. "Whoever they are, doesn't really matter right now. We need to get to the control tower."

"You're right. We might find out on the way, but we have a mission." Shepard looked around at the three exits. "Does anyone here read whatever language that is?"

Both Liara and Garrus responded with an "I do."

"I'm guessing that means it's turian. Why did you bother learning how to read turian, Liara?"

"I-"

"Never mind. Any of them point to the control room?"

"The one of the left." Garrus led the way to the door. Tali looked at the hard, rigid script, so foreign from the flowing lines of her native tongue. With almost everyone equipped with a universal translator, it was easy to forget that no one here actually spoke Khelish besides her. Weird.

The path they were on opened up into a small holding area. A dozen or so salarians were caged in spaces barely big enough to lie down in. Tali's heart twisted when she saw the prisoners' conditions. The scene reminded her of the ship with Dr. Saleon. She hated seeing people suffer. The heat of a battle was one thing, when others were trying to kill her or her friends, but this was different. She still wasn't used to seeing cruelty like this, and she hoped she never adjusted.

Shepard approached the nearest cell. "I'm Commander Shepard. Can you tell me what happened? Were you with Kirrahe?"

A snarl formed on the salarian's lips. "What do you want? I told you everything!" His eyes narrowed when he saw who they were. "Who are you? Human, military insignia, must be Alliance, right?" His face broke out into a smile. "I knew someone would come for me. It tried to break me, but it couldn't! I shut it out!" He was holding his hands to keep them from shaking.

"Slow down. Take a breath." Shepard spoke in soothing tones. "I need to know what happened here."

"Yes. Yes. Private Menos Avat of the Third Infiltration Regiment STG, sir! Captured during a reconnaissance mission six days ago." The shaking in his hands intensified. He slammed his fist into the wall, stopping the tremors. "It's so good to answer a question, sir. They never ask anything, they just prod and pull and slice away. Whispering. Always whispering in places where you can't scratch. What do they want?"

Shepard looked sadly at Avot. "What did they do to you, soldier?"

"Experiments. I don't know what, or why. Something to do with the whispering, maybe? Doesn't matter. I just need to get out." Avot blew out a shaky puff of air. "I've been strong so far. I don't think I can make it any longer. I need out. NOW. Please?"

Liara glanced at Avot's cellmates and the other cages. Most of them were unresponsive, muttering incoherent ramblings. "Something is not right here, Shepard."

Shepard arched an eyebrow at the asari. "Really?"

"Yes. Many of these salarians are displaying the same signs as those that attacked us before. I would advise caution…" She trailed off when Garrus put his head in his hands. "You were being sarcastic."

"Maybe."

Avot interrupted Liara's lesson on human vocal intonation. "You have to let me out. Then it will be right again. Yes?"

Shepard didn't reply. Tali walked over to him and touched his arm. "We can't leave them here. That's as good as killing them, even if we didn't have a nuke scheduled to explode." He looked down at her, a half-smile on his face.

"You're right." He pulled the switch on the wall, and the gates of the cages swung open. "You need to leave quickly. There's-"

Avot sighed with relief. "Finally. Now I can follow the orders. They're such simple orders, why do they need to be repeated over and over and over." He meandered over to Liara, while the rest of the soldiers remained in their prisons despite the escape route. Liara appeared hesitant on Avot's approach, but he halted just shy of touching and simply grinned at the asari. She cleared her throat uncomfortably.

"Hello-"

Avot sunk his fingers into her face. She screamed and fell onto her back, the salarian following her to the ground. The other prisoners started screeching and lunged for the team. Tali jumped back and blasted a couple into oblivion. These went down as easily as the last group, but they provided a long enough distraction for Avot to continue mauling Liara. A blue light lit up the room like a mini sun, causing Tali to cover her face. Despite the tinted visor, the searing glow was more than enough to pain her sensitive eyes. When the light ceased, she looked back at Liara and blinked rapidly, trying to make the spots in her vision disappear. After her sight finally cleared, she saw Liara still lying on her back, her face scoured with marks and blood. Her teeth were bared, and she was staring at something on the ceiling with unbridled hatred.

A few strings of guts and skin hung limply from the stain growing on the metal feature. The blood pattern sprayed out in all directions like someone had thrown a bucket of green paint. Whatever Liara had done left Avot's remains stuck to the ceiling, though there weren't any recognizable features remaining to determine the victim's identity. It was a conglomeration of flesh, blood, and bone smeared roughly into the outline of a person. Tali had to tear her gaze away. _I will not be sick, I will not be sick…_ She heaved as the image came back to her mind but managed to keep anything from coming back up.

Shepard and Garrus were still engrossed in the body. Tali gritted her teeth and bent her head to block the view, making her way over to Liara and kneeling down beside her. She hadn't lost that animalistic visage, and the marks from Avot's hands only enhanced the savage look. Bruises were already starting to show around her neck and cheeks, and one of her eyes was completely red with irritation.

"Liara…are you okay? Let me help." Tali reached over to touch her, but she recoiled, her hands glowing blue. "Hey, hey, it's me." Tali gently put her hands around Liara's wrists, slowly lowering them from the defensive position they had taken. Liara's eyes focused on Tali, and a stream of water leaked out of the wounded one.

"He…it felt horrible. Being shot at is one thing but…"

"I know." Tali applied medigel to the cuts while Liara sniffled, trying to hold back actual tears.

"I am sorry. I have just never been so scared. I will be fine, though." She slowly got back to her feet, not taking the proffered hand. "Thank you, but I am well."

"We can take a moment, if you need," Shepard said.

"We cannot afford to wait. We should move on." This time, Liara set off first, leading them through the maze of corridors.

A few flights of stairs later, they came into an almost identical room from where they left the other salarians. Most appeared to be in the same condition as the others they had encountered, but one had the spark of coherency in his gaze and remained motionless as they advanced. He called out to them as they made their way past. "Hey! Over here!"

Liara didn't so much as glance in his direction, maintaining her route to the exit. Shepard stopped her before she could leave. "We should check on him."

She crossed her arms and leaned against the wall without saying anything. Tali inspected the salarian as they approached his cell. He didn't seem worried or relieved to see them. He just looked tired.

"Well, you're not a geth. And you're not wearing a lab coat. I guess I'm happy to see you." He gave a half-hearted salute. "Lieutenant Ganto Imness of the Third Inflitration Regiment. I was captured while doing-"

"Reconnaissance. We've heard this before." Shepard sighed. "The last time we let salarians out of their cages, they went ballistic and tried to kill us."

Imness nodded. "I would expect so. My team was altered, indoctrinated. Kirrahe knew about the krogan experiments, but that's only part of what is going on in this facility. The indoctrination studies are a far greater threat."

"They were studying it? What about it? What for?"

"I do not know. I have yet to be taken under the microscope. That's probably the only reason I still have my sanity." He looked at his cellmates. "I've seen good people reduced to mindless husks. Whatever it is, it strips you of everything until there's nothing left but a tool to be used."

"So Saren uses this indoctrination to control his people, but he's running tests on it?"

"Yes. I don't think he fully understands it." Imness put his hands on the bars. "Please, you have to let me out."

Shepard scrutinized Imness for a while longer before shrugging. "You seem more intact than any of the others we've come across. I'll let you out, but the others will remain in lock up. The blast will be a more merciful death than bullets anyway."

Imness cocked his head. "So, try to outrun the blast radius and don't look back? A better chance than I had before you showed up." The door swung open. He took a couple of ginger steps, his body clearly not in the best physical condition. "Thank you." He jogged away, his feet gaining more confidence with every step. Soon he disappeared behind the door they came in from.

Tali felt pity as they moved away from the cages, but she knew there wasn't anything they could do for them. She followed Liara into an elevator, looking out the window as they ascended. Glimpses of the sea were visible through the various walls and cliffs, and the fading sun colored everything in a burnt orange. The path took them along open-air catwalks, allowing them to bask in the warm, ocean breeze for a minute before plunging themselves back into the metallic depths of the stronghold.

Garrus popped the two salarians before they could move more than a couple feet as they entered the next room. The asari sitting behind the desk jumped up as the shots rang out. Her white lab coat told them all they needed to know about her affiliations. They trained their guns on her, rapidly closing the distance between them.

"Wait! Don't shoot!" She put her hands up and stepped back from her desk, her hurried retreat knocking her chair into the wall. Her eyes shied away from the barrels, unable to meet their gazes and instead looking at their feet. "Please, I-I'm just a scientist!"

"Just a scientist, huh?" Shepard kept his weapon pointed at her while he searched the desk. "Seems to me that the scientists in this place have a lot to answer for."

The asari licked her dry lips. "Look, my name is Rana Thanoptis. I-"

"I don't care what your name is." Rana flinched at Shepard's tone. "You work for Saren. You helped torture these soldiers. Give me one good reason I shouldn't kill you right now."

"I'm just as much of a prisoner as those salarians! You think indoctrination only affects them? Sooner or later, Saren will want to dissect my brain too."

Tali went to her computer and started browsing through the files. Everything revolved around indoctrination. From the amount of data available, they must have run thousands of experiments. However, based on her cursory skimming, there didn't seem to be any breakthroughs on how the process could be stopped, only intricacies on how it worked. _Still, might be useful._ She felt a twinge of guilt downloading data procured from whatever horrors had been inflicted here but brushed it aside. Shepard could decide later if he wanted to use anything from it or not; at least now he had a choice.

Liara sneered. "Like you dissected countless brains before? Forgive me if I am a little short on sympathy."

"I never had any physical contact with the prisoners. I only analyzed the results. It was all to further Saren's understanding of indoctrination, I think. He did his best to keep me in the dark."

Shepard seemed perplexed. "Why would you work for Saren if you didn't even know why you were doing it?"

"I didn't exactly have a choice," Rana said, rubbing her arm. "This position became more…permanent than I had anticipated."

"You still aided and abetted these atrocities."

"So I should be killed for not wanting to die myself?" Rana pointed a shaky finger at the door behind her. "I can help you. This door leads to Saren's private lab. I know the code." She turned around and inputted some numbers into the keypad. The light above the frame switched to green. "See? Full access to all of Saren's private files. Are we good? Can I go?"

Shepard didn't answer her question. "I want to know more about what you were doing here."

"It all has to do with that ship, Sovereign. It emits some kind of signal, undetectable but present. Saren uses it to control his followers, but its source is the ship. Direct exposure makes you a mindless slave like those salarians, but that's just part of the damage that can occur. Spend too much time near the ship, and you start to feel a tingle in the back of your skull every time it's near. You become compelled to do things, and you do them without question. The whisper consumes everything before long."

"If that's true, why aren't you affected?"

Rana tugged at her collar. "I will be soon enough, which is why I need to get out of here. The last trial we ran was on the person I replaced."

Garrus frowned. "Hang on, how did Saren get in control of something like this? Shouldn't it mess with him too?"

"That's the thing. I don't think he is in control. I think he's scared he's slowly being indoctrinated as well, which is why he has this facility." She paused, looking at all of them for mercy. "Now can I please leave? I don't…I don't want to die."

Shepard rolled his eyes. "I'm going to blow this place to hell, so you'd better start running. Now."

"Wh-what? How will I escape in time?"

"Not my problem. Get moving before I change my mind."

"Alright, I'm gone." She scampered between them for the door, fumbling with the button before getting free.

Garrus shook his head at the fleeing asari. "That's going to come back to haunt us if she actually makes it out of here."

"Let's hope not." With the way forward now apparent, Shepard retook the lead and passed through the door. The catwalk they were on hung off the side of the castle. Tali glanced down at one point and felt her head start to spin. _That is a long way to fall._

A few more hallways and an elevator ride later took them to an almost empty chamber. Shepard's eyes widened when he stepped inside. Tali saw what he was looking at, but she didn't recognize what it was. It just looked like a long, silver antenna. A faded green interface appeared at its base as they entered, but the script was just as unreadable to her as the door signs. _I should really install a translation software for my visor._ "What is it, Shepard?"

"That's a Prothean beacon. Like the one on Eden Prime."

Liara gasped. "Truly?" She scurried ahead of them, carefully avoiding touch while she examined every inch in sight. "Oh my. This looks to be in almost perfect working condition. And look at the writing! Definitely Prothean." She took out a journal from her pocket and started writing in it, pacing excitedly in front of the machine.

Garrus chuckled. "You know, you could record this on your omnitool. Take pictures, make a voice memo, the whole deal."

Liara smiled to herself as she continued scribbling furiously. "I will certainly be taking photography, but I like to keep notes about sites on paper. There is more freedom to add drawings and…never mind. I do not need to explain myself."

Shepard rolled his shoulders. "I'm guessing I'm going to have to interact with it. Whoopie."

"Are you sure?" Tali nervously started bouncing on her feet. "Do we even know what that thing will do to you? I heard the last one didn't go so well."

"I'll be fine. Promise. And this one looks much less damaged in any case." He passed Liara and put his hands on the console, pressing a few buttons.

Liara watched over his shoulder, fascinated. "How do you know what you are doing?"

"I can read some of it. I don't know. It's more of a feeling." The green light vanished, and the antenna started pulsing. Shepard locked his jaw. "Here we go again." His back arched suddenly, and he was lifted off the floor. It appeared like an electrical current was surging through his body, complete with violent twitching and strained muscles. It took all of Tali's willpower not to run over and pull him down.

It was over as quickly as it began. Not five seconds later, Shepard dropped to the ground, landing on one knee. He righted himself before they could get over to help him up. "What happened?" Tali asked, reading data from his life support as she circled him. From what she could tell, both from the computer and from her visual inspection, he seemed to be no worse for wear.

"I'm alright. Actually, I don't really feel anything at all." He tested his movements, rotating his arms around.

Liara lightly brushed a finger along the side of the beacon, carefully avoiding the area Shepard had interacted with. "What did you see?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe it'll sort itself out by the time we're out of here."

As Tali continued to check for signs of injury, a red hologram shimmered into existence on the platform above their heads. Everyone looked to the quarian for answers. "What? I don't know what it is."

Garrus eyed the ominous light suspiciously. "Can't you run one of your scans and find out?"

Tali brought up a couple of screens on her omnitool. "Well…it's a holographic interface."

"No kidding."

"Hey, you can do this yourself if you want." She ran a few tracer programs to no avail. "All I know is that it's locked on to another source. I can't tell where or who it is without direct access, though."

Shepard strode purposefully up the ramp, walked directly to the screens, and started interacting with the keyboard. "Only one way to find out."

A large shape winked into view in front of them. It resembled a large insect with a body too big for its many spindly legs. The image emitted more red light, bathing everything in the small room in a blood-colored haze. _Well, my blood color at least._ When it spoke, its voice reverberated deep within Tali's chest. "You are not Saren." It felt as if the entire structure shook with its words.

Tali brought up her omnitool again, hoping to establish a clearer connection now that the link had been created. "This must be some sort of VI."

Garrus chuckled softly. "If this is what Saren programs his VI to sound like, he's more of a megalomaniac than we thought."

Shepard furrowed his brow as he looked at the thing. "It's Saren's ship. I recognize it from Eden Prime. But what is it-"

The voice boomed forth once more, silencing their discussion. "Rudimentary creatures of flesh and blood. You touch my mind, fumbling in ignorance, incapable of understanding."

Tali gulped. "I don't think that's a VI."

"There is a realm of existence so far beyond your own you cannot even imagine it. I am beyond your comprehension. I am Sovereign."

Shepard took a step back as realization sank in. "Holy shit. Saren didn't just find a Reaper ship. He found an actual Reaper!"

"Reaper?" Despite Sovereign's virtual monotone, one could feel the condescension dripping from every word it spoke. "A label created by the Protheans to give voice to their destruction. In the end, what they choose to call us is irrelevant. We simply are."

Liara shook her head. "You can't have been there when the Protheans fell. That was over 50,000 years ago."

"The aberration that is organic life is nothing but a genetic mutation, an accident. You measure time in years and decades. You wither. You die." The certainty of that statement sent chills down Tali's spine. "We do not share this flaw. We are eternal. The pinnacle of evolution and existence. Your extinction is inevitable, for we are the end of everything."

Shepard checked the time on his omnitool. "Is there a point to this little speech, or are we just here to trade empty threats? Normally I'd love to, but I have somewhere to be at the moment."

"Your bravado will not save you. The cycle cannot be broken."

"What cycle?"

Shepard gave Garrus a look. "Don't encourage it, it'll just go on some long tirade again about how worthless we are."

"The pattern has repeated itself more times than you can fathom. Organic civilizations rise, evolve, advance. When they reach the apex of their glory, they are extinguished." Tali didn't understand how Shepard could appear so nonchalant in front of Sovereign. The feel of its voice alone was enough to make her hands shake, let alone the actual content of the conversation. She didn't know if conversation was the right word for this exchange; it felt more like receiving a death sentence. From a god.

"The Protheans were not the first. They did not create the Citadel. They did not forge the mass relays." Tali saw Liara surreptitiously slip out her notebook and start writing things down. "They merely found them. The legacy of my kind."

"If you created the mass relays, why allow us to use them?"

"By using our technology, your civilizations develop along the paths we desire. We impose order on the chaos of evolution. You exist because we allow it. And you will end because we demand it."

Tali felt her mouth go dry. Liara looked up from her book, horrified. "They are harvesting us. Letting us advance to the level they need, then wiping us out!"

Shepard stepped back from the console. "I've had enough of this. You may be eternal, you may have lived for millions of years and all that, but you're still a machine. And machines can be broken."

Sovereign appeared unmoved by Shepard, but then again, it had as of yet to appear 'moved.' "Your words are as meaningless and empty as your future. I am the vanguard of your destruction. This exchange is over." Sovereign vanished as quickly as it had come. In an instant, all of the windows around them shattered inward, covering them in glass shards. Before they had recovered, Joker came in over the radio.

"Commander? We got trouble."

Shepard dusted himself off and got to his feet. "Let me guess. It has something to do with Saren's big ass ship."

"Yeah, actually. That thing just pulled a turn that would shear any of our ships in half. It's coming your way, and it's coming hard. You need to wrap things up in there, fast!"

Shepard gestured at the console. "Can you shut off the AA guns from here, Tali?"

She stepped up to the keyboard. "It looks like whatever broke the windows also damaged the system pretty badly. But…if I can replace some of the components with parts in my omnitool…there. They should be offline now."

"Good. Joker, you're clear to approach. We'll meet you at these coordinates."

"Roger that."

Shepard turned and faced the rest of his team. "Now we know what we're up against. An actual Reaper."

"By the Goddess…what are we going to do, Shepard?" Liara looked pretty shaken. _So would I if I wasn't wearing a mask._

Shepard steeled his gaze, confidence emanating from him in waves. "We are going to win."

They waited a couple of seconds for him to continue, but he merely walked through them toward the elevator. Garrus scoffed. "That simple, huh?"

"That simple."


	23. Chapter 23: Ashes and Dust

**And now for the conclusion of Virmire. Thank you to everyone for sticking with it, and for the constant feedback!**

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The battle was incessant from the moment they left the control tower. After the AA guns were disabled, Saren's army must have realized someone had tampered with them from inside the base. Wave after wave of geth and krogan poured out, hindering their progress to the bomb placement site. Fighting along the catwalks was especially dangerous as both sides used biotic abilities in an attempt to fling the others to their deaths. After a group was defeated, they would get a few seconds at most of reprieve before more showed up, making every inch they gained feel like a mile. _How does Saren have this many soldiers to spare with an assault force at his front gates?_ Tali's suit had to work overtime to keep sweat from pooling in her boots, filtering out the liquid constantly.

She saw Shepard barely avoid a charging krogan, getting clipped on the shoulder as it flew past him. The krogan continued on its path and barreled straight into Garrus, throwing the turian to the ground and landing on top of him. "Garrus, hold on to something!" Liara called out. Struggling through the krogan's barrage of fists, Garrus twisted around and hooked his rifle onto one of the support beams for the railing, putting his hands on either side of the gun. The asari sent a wave of energy at the pair. The krogan was blasted off Garrus, but the force was only enough to extricate the turian. The sheer weight of the beast absorbed most of the attack, leaving him still very much on the catwalk.

He grinned and kicked the turian, sending him spinning off the platform and leaving him dangling by his rifle. Tali pumped shells into the krogan with little effect, and she couldn't remain focused on the krogan for long or the geth would overwhelm them. She turned around and threw a mine behind her, blowing up the path and a unit with it. Deciding to ignore the incoming fire for now, she advanced on Garrus' assailant, trying to distract him from the vulnerable squad mate.

Liara marched toward them as well, pulsing with power. She sent blast after blast into the krogan, smashing his body against the metal. After the seventh such attack, the railing started to bend out over the chasm. Just when it seemed Liara would test the krogan's ability to fly, she collapsed to the floor, blood flowing from her nose. Before he could recover from the assault, Tali took a running leap and smashed her feet into his chest, finishing the deal. His cry gradually faded until it was abruptly cut off with a loud crack as the body bounced off the side of the fortress. She spun around and quickly helped Garrus back onto the ledge. Shepard was busy keeping the bulk of the other attackers pinned down ahead. Liara wiped her blood on her sleeve and got back to her feet, her face set with determination. _How are we going to keep this up?_

Yet somehow, they did. She had two different breaches in her suit from bullet entries, the left side of her realk had a long tear from a geth finger, tired and sore had lost all meaning, but they made it. Shepard knelt in the knee-deep water and dunked his head, shaking the droplets off when he came back up. _That looks so refreshing…_

Garrus watched the entrance they had come from, keeping his gun half-raised. "What now, Shepard?"

Shepard brushed the water from his face. "This is where the bomb needs to be placed. Now, we just wait for Joker to show up."

As if on cue, the Normandy swung into view a few seconds later, swinging wide to reduce its speed before settling down on a makeshift landing pad. There was barely enough room to stand between either side of the ship and the walls; a deviation of a single foot could have had catastrophic consequences. Joker didn't even scratch the paint.

The cargo bay opened, and Kaidan stepped out with a couple of the crew members. They were carrying Kirrahe's makeshift bomb between them. The round sphere couldn't have been more than waist height; it was astonishing what such a relatively small object could do when configured properly.

Kaidan grinned when he saw them, nodding at the Commander. "Nice to see you in one piece, sir." He looked at the haggard state of the group and shrugged. "Well, not dead at least."

"Nice to see you too, Kaidan. Better you than another fucking krogan. Speaking of, how is Wrex?"

Kaidan chuckled as they set down the bomb next to the geothermal taps. "He was so insistent he'd be ready by the time the Normandy landed that Chakwas had to sedate him to keep him from coming out here right now."

Garrus whistled. "Chakwas is a braver person than I am."

"Ah, you know no one can stay mad at her anyway. Not even Wrex." Kaidan started typing a few things into the interface someone had haphazardly screwed onto the top of the thing.

Shepard clapped his hands together. "Alright. So now we just need to wait for Ashley and the STG people to get here and we should be good." He clicked his radio. "Ash, what's your status?"

Tali could hear the intense firefight occurring in the background as Ashley panted her reply. "Not good. The geth have us pinned down at the AA tower. We've taken heavy casualties. If we try to move, we'll all die in minutes. There's no way we'll make it to the rendezvous point in time."

Shepard started marching towards the Normandy immediately. "Joker, get over to the AA tower now!"

"Negative, Commander. It's too hot; we can't risk it! We'll hold them off for as long as we-" The broadcast cut out suddenly.

"Wiliams. Williams come in." No answer. "Damn it." Shepard kicked the water in frustration. "We were _this_ close to getting this to work!"

Kaidan walked up to Shepard, leaving the bomb for a minute. "You have to go and rescue them. I need more time to set up the nuke anyway. You can get them and meet me back here."

Shepard clasped Kaidan's shoulder. "We will come back for you."

"I know. Now hurry and save them; Ashley needs to cash in on a free drink, after all."

Shepard circled his hand around. "Let's move out. Normandy, remain on standby near the tower; we might need a speedy extraction."

"Roger that, Commander."

"Good luck, Kaidan," Tali said as she walked by the bomb.

"You too. See you soon."

Two of the crew members stayed behind with Kaidan, keeping an eye on the surroundings while Kaidan got back to work on the bomb. The Normandy's engines roared to life, and the ship rose into the sky, disturbing the water into choppy ripples. Tali locked onto Ashley's position, and they headed towards the AA guns.

"We should just need to take this elevator…" Tali stopped short as she rounded the corner. A krogan warlord stood between them and their intended destination, smirking as he stopped their progress.

"I thought the others might try to save their friends. Now I have you all to myself." He cocked his shotgun. "After I'm done with you, I'll be sure to let your friends know you died screaming."

"Charming fellow." Shepard cracked his knuckles and stood in front of Tali. "I bet no one's going to show up at your funeral."

"Probably not. Good thing I'm not dying." The krogan clicked a button on his belt.

The ground beneath Tali's feet erupted, scattering the squad and slamming her squarely into a wall. She spent the next few moments unsuccessfully trying to refill her lungs. Pain seared up from the ankle she had injured on the asteroid, and a sharp stabbing sensation accompanied every attempt to suck in air. She saw Shepard staggering to his feet and beginning to engage the warlord, keeping him from simply walking up to the rest of them and finishing them off. _Keelah, I think I broke a rib. Or five._ She focused on maintaining a steady rhythm to her breathing, eventually finding a pattern that didn't threaten to make her pass out from the pain. She glanced down at her legs. The explosion had turned most of the lower half of her body black, but luckily, the flame retardant material had resisted much of the damage.

She strained to rise to a sitting position, propping herself up with the concrete. Liara was still facedown where she landed. _Thank the Ancestors we're not still standing in water._ She could see Garrus on the other side of the room, also using the wall for support. She knew she wouldn't recover quickly enough to be of any use to Shepard, so she pulled her omnitool up and started hacking random things on the krogan. Garrus steadied his rifle on his knee and pulled the trigger without aiming, pointing the rifle in the general direction of the warlord. Eventually, Garrus got a lucky shot just as Tali shorted the shields, ripping a bullet through the enemy's arm. Shepard pressed the attack, finishing him off in a hail of gunfire.

Tali looked at Garrus, and they gave each other an air high three from their places on the floor. She chuckled, then winced as the laugh upset her angry ribs.

Shepard rushed over to Liara, turning her over and checking her pulse. "Liara!" After making sure she was still alive, he gently shook her awake. She slowly blinked her eyes open, looking around in confusion.

"This is not the dig site." Her eyes settled on Shepard. "Oh."

Shepard laughed, patting her arm. "Glad you aren't dead." Shepard ran over to Tali, kneeling down beside her and putting a hand on her shoulder. "Hey you."

"Hey yourself."

"Are you alright?" She gestured for him to help her up. He put his arm around her and slowly brought her to her feet, taking most of the weight on himself.

"I think I'll be okay. Probably no more acrobatics for a while, though."

He eased his arm from around her, making sure she could stand on her own before pulling back. She frowned at him. "How come you're not hurt or anything?"

"I got lucky, didn't hit anything after the explosion. Just dislocated my shoulder, easy fix."

Tali shuddered. "Nope. Ow. Nope."

Shepard smiled. "I'm going to check on Garrus now. See if you can help Liara get to the elevator?"

"I'll be sure to give her lots of verbal encouragement."

Tali trudged over to the asari, who was already standing by the time she got there. "How are you feeling?"

Liara held her head in her hands. "My head feels like it is going to shatter into a million pieces. I do not think I suffered any other injuries, however."

"Good. Let's move to the elevator; Shepard will meet us there with Garrus."

By the time the lift arrived, Shepard and Garrus had joined them. Garrus didn't have any visible wounds and appeared to be walking fine, but Tali guessed he was just being tough.

They stepped out onto one of the highest points in the fortress, once again providing them with a spectacular view of the ocean. As they walked across the platform, a geth dropship zipped across the skyline, heading directly from where they just came from. Ashley came over the radio once more, apparently having fixed whatever problem had interrupted her before.

"Heads up, Commander. Just spotted a troop ship headed your way."

Shepard's face fell. "We're not there anymore. It's just Alenko and a couple crewmen."

Kaidan broke in. "They're already here. Geth are swarming all over the bomb site."

Shepard started pacing back and forth. "Can you hold them off long enough for us to get back?"

Gunfire and panicked shouting accompanied Kaidan's voice. "I don't think we'll be able to survive long enough for a return trip, Commander. I'm activating the bomb."

"What?!" Shepard seemed to be pressing the com button harder in an attempt to emphasize his words. "Stand down, Lieutenant. We'll find a way back to you."

"It's done, Shepard. Go find Williams and get the hell out of here." Kaidan's voice was eerily calm as he ordered Shepard to leave him to be evaporated.

Ashley, on the other hand, was quite vehement in her response. "Screw that! We'll be fine here, go back and get the Lieutenant!"

"How much time do we have, Kaidan?"

"Not enough."

Shepard grabbed the railing, breathing heavily. He punched the metal, enunciating each blow with a verbal release of his frustration. "Damn it damn it damn it DAMN IT." He stopped, staring into nothing as he chewed his lip furiously until it started bleeding. Tali was frozen with horror. No matter what they did, she would be leaving a friend behind today. And there was nothing she could do about it. She could not imagine being in Shepard's position, having to choose between two lives like this. It would break her.

Shepard slowly exhaled. He pushed himself back from the edge and started walking to the AA tower, his face a stoic mask. "Joker, get your ass over to the AA guns. I'll let you know when you're clear to land."

"Yes sir."

"No!" Ashley's voice broke a few times as she screamed into the radio. "Do not come and get me! Go back for him; he's more valuable than me, he's a higher rank-"

"You know this is the right choice, Ash." Kaidan sounded peaceful. "There are more lives to be saved by going to get you."

Shepard pressed the button for the elevator. Tali saw a single tear form in the corner of his eye. "Kaidan…I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

"It's okay Commander. I don't regret a thing. It was an honor to serve with you. All of you."

"You're a damn fine soldier, Alenko."

"Thanks, Garrus. I-" His transmission was lost as he no doubt fought to keep the geth from reaching the bomb.

Tali was too choked up to say anything, simply trying to keep from bawling. The elevator ride was completely silent, each of the team members lost in their own thoughts as they traveled farther away from one of their own. One they had promised they wouldn't leave behind. One they were now being forced to.

The doors opened on a fierce firefight between the STG unit and the geth. Tali started seeing red when she locked onto the robotic forms. They had taken Rannoch, they had taken the lives of most of her people, and now they were taking a friend. _I will never forgive these things for all the evil they have done. Never._

She lost herself to the battle, her soreness forgotten in her hatred. The risks she took in her merciless abandon, the new injuries she sustained, none of that mattered. Nothing could stop her until the last geth was no more than useless scrap.

Shepard was right there beside her, keeping her safe and taking revenge for himself. Their deadly dance littered the battlefield with geth corpses. Eventually, the assault from multiple sides collapsed the geth formation, and the cleanup took little time to finish. Ashley stood up from her cover, her face hollow. "Shepard-"

She was interrupted by a biotic wave that sent her ducking behind cover once more. Tali's eyes widened. Saren was flying directly for Shepard on a hovercraft surrounded by shimmering waves of power.

They quickly scrambled behind a wall as Saren bombarded their position, the force strong enough to send cracks spider webbing through the structure. After everyone was safely hidden from sight, he stopped his rampage and jumped from his craft, landing about thirty feet away from Shepard. The Commander shot some rounds into Saren, but the bullets were erased by Saren's biotic field. When the turian didn't respond in kind, Shepard stopped for a moment, put off by his cessation of hostilities.

"I applaud you, Shepard. The geth were utterly convinced the salarians were the real threat. An impressive diversion." He crossed his arms, tilting his head as he continued. "Of course, it was all for nothing. I cannot let you disrupt what I have accomplished here. You can't possibly understand what's really at stake."

"Wow. You sound a lot like your Reaper master." Shepard set his jaw. "I'm getting tired of being told I can't understand things. Make me understand, then."

"You've seen the visions from the beacons as well, Shepard. You of all people should comprehend that they cannot be stopped." Saren almost sounded as if he was pleading with Shepard. His voice had lost the superior tone it normally contained, and he almost sounded like a normal turian. If it weren't for the things he was saying, of course.

"Do not mire yourself in pointless revolt. Do not sacrifice everything for the sake of petty freedoms. The Protheans tried to fight, and they were annihilated, along with countless civilizations before them." He took a few steps towards Shepard. "Trillions dead. But what if they hadn't fought back? Is not submission preferable to extinction?"

Shepard's jaw actually dropped. "Are you blind? Do you really think the Reapers will let us live? The speech I got from Sovereign was a little light on the merciful side and little heavy on the 'you will end because we demand it' side."

Saren's face hardened. Tali could see for the first time little pieces of metal infused with his flesh; what was he doing to himself? "Now you see why I didn't bring this before the Council! Organics are driven by emotion instead of logic. We will fight even if the end is already determined." He became excited, gesturing wildly with his hands. "But if we make ourselves useful to the Reapers…think how many lives could be saved!

"Once I was made aware of this, I joined Sovereign. I knew the…dangers associated with doing so, which is why I had this place. I hoped it would protect me."

"Hoped? As in you no longer believe it will. You know Sovereign is using you, just like it is using all of these other mindless slaves. You're afraid he's controlling your thoughts."

"No." Saren didn't sound very convinced. "I've studied the effects of indoctrination. The more influence Sovereign exudes over a subject, the less useful they become. He needs me. This is my saving grace. He needs me to find the Conduit. The transformation is subtle; I will not let it happen to me."

Shepard laughed. "What do you think will happen once your usefulness is over with? It has already happened, Saren." He moved closer to Saren, carefully keeping his gun in a nonthreatening space. "But you know Sovereign's plans. If we work together, we could stop him. We could keep this monstrosity from ever taking place! If you help Sovereign, you are condemning the galaxy to death. If you work against him, you'll be saving trillions of lives just like you wanted. Please. Stop this."

Saren hesitated for a moment. _No way. Did Shepard actually talk Saren down?_ He slowly shook his head. "I no longer believe that Shepard. I am trying to forge an alliance between organics and synthetics that will be the salvation of all life. But you." He pointed at Shepard, a snarl forming. "You would undo all that I have done. You would doom us to complete destruction. And for that, you must die."

He hurtled forward, covering the distance to Shepard in a single leap. Tali felt the tremor as Shepard's back impacted with the stone. They spun around several times, trading parries and blows, before Saren smashed Shepard's head against the wall and let him drop to the ground.

Once they were separated, Tali shot him point blank in the spine. His barrier didn't so much as waver as it eliminated the entirety of her shell. Without glancing in her direction, he drove his heel into her stomach, pushing her away and dropping her to the ground. _Lost my breath…not again…oh…_

Liara engaged Saren in a swirling flurry of biotic attacks. They matched each other move for move, negating the other's powers at the last moment, slicing through blasts before they connected. All the while, Saren was deflecting the constant barrage from Ashley, Garrus, and the salarians.

The asari's attacks noticeably weakened after a few seconds, her focus shifting almost purely to defense as Saren pressed the advantage. Finally, she read Saren wrong, and his blast sent her shooting up into the air. He grabbed her with the invisible force and sent her crashing back down.

Saren didn't bother finishing the others, striding purposefully to where Shepard was slowly rising to his feet. Tali fought through the pain and got a foot underneath her. Saren reached the Commander and lifted him up, pinning him off the ground with one arm and brutalizing him with the other. Shepard hit everything he could find, the arm, the eyes, the throat, but nothing seemed to faze the turian. Tali now had both her legs where they should be, still hunched over from the throbs in her chest. She knew bullets weren't going to do anything to him; the others had ceased fire for fear of hitting their ally. She saw Shepard's writhing getting weaker as she hobbled closer, drawing the knife in her boot. _He will not take you._ Shepard's face was bright purple, and his hands desperately clawed at Saren's vicelike grip. _He will not take you._ Saren almost looked sad as Shepard's expression slacked, his arms falling limp by his sides. _HE WILL NOT TAKE YOU._

Tali screamed as she jumped onto Saren, driving the blade into wherever she could find purchase. He jerked back, his hand reaching over and grabbing the back of her hood. He threw her off, and she watched the world spin a few times until she managed to stop her rolling. Her hand still held her knife, now lathered in blue.

An alarm started blaring in the distance. Saren wordlessly abandoned his pursuit and returned to his vessel. The bullets sent his way didn't deter him as he flew off, fading from Tali's view. She turned her head, searching for any signs of life from Shepard as she heard the Normandy's engines getting louder. She sighed with relief when she saw him cough, his color steadily returning to its normal shade. An arm found its way under hers, hoisting her up and helping her walk to the descending ship. Garrus got Shepard to his feet and did the same for him. She looked to her right and saw Ashley's face staring grimly at the opening cargo bay.

"Thank you."

Ashley smiled at her. "You barely weigh anything."

"Ashley…I'm so sorry about Kaidan." Tali finally let the tears flow, crying into Ashley's shoulder as they waited to board. Ashley turned once more to stone.

"Let's just get on the ship."

Ashley gently set her down near the Mako. Shepard and Liara were deposited similarly next to her, and Joker wasted no time taking off the moment the last straggler got inside. Tali heard her radio click, and Ashley's voice started speaking through her helmet.

"Are you still there, Kaidan?"

After a few moments of silence, harsh breathing cut through the static. "You know it. I've got them pinned where they can't get to me. The bomb will be safe."

"Why did you do it? It should be me down there right now."

Kaidan ignored her question. "I can see you guys. You should just make it. Ten seconds left now." Kaidan's breath started speeding up. "This is it, isn't it? I feel like I should say something profound. All I've got is good luck. How sad is that? I can't even come up-"

The radio cut off. The Normandy wobbled as a massive wave of air jostled its flight. The sound that accompanied the detonation was less of a boom and more like a slow, rolling rumble that rose into an ear-shattering crescendo. Tali thought the ship was going to tear itself apart with all of the shaking. Then, in an instant, the Normandy smoothed out, and the sound disappeared without a trace.

Ashley slowly walked past them, her face contorted as she fought to control her emotions. She stopped in front of Shepard and looked him in the eye. "It should have been me." Shepard didn't respond as she left, looking straight ahead with his fists clenched at his sides. His face had started to swell already, the cuts and bruises almost hiding his expression, but Tali could see the defeat in his eyes. She reached over and grabbed his hand, squeezing it as much as she could.

"It's not your fault."

"Yes, it is." His hand was limp in her grasp. "If I could have brought Saren on to our side…if I had known what to say. He was so close, Tali. I could feel him wavering." His head clunked against the Mako. "We wouldn't have needed to detonate the bomb. We could have saved him. I had a choice to make, and it was my decision that left one of us behind today. I wasn't smart enough or strong enough. I don't deserve your comfort." He pulled his hand away. "I don't deserve you."

She stretched her arm out, taking his hand back into hers. "I don't care who deserves what; you have me anyway. You did everything you could, everything anyone could in that situation."

His mouth cracked into the smallest of smiles. "Thanks for saying that." She leaned her tired head against his shoulder, waiting for Chakwas to burst in and bustle them all away to the med bay. She didn't know how to help Shepard get through this. It would probably haunt him for the rest of his life. She hadn't even had time to process hearing Kaidan's final moments herself. But, no matter what, he wouldn't have to go through it alone. Not while she could help it.


	24. Chapter 24: Warmth

**Hello everybody! I figured we had seen enough action in the last few chapters, and it was time for some more fluff. It will be a wild ride soon enough, I'm sure. Hope you enjoy!**

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The room was quiet, the soft thrum of the drive core generating a pleasant amount of white noise in the background. Shepard was waiting for the others in the conference room, lost in his thoughts as he stared through the blank wall in front of him. He hadn't properly dealt with the aftermath from Virmire and the consequences that were his and his alone to bear. His life wouldn't exactly qualify as easy; he had seen his family slaughtered and his entire unit erased from existence by monsters from nightmares. _And they built a damn statue of me. For what? Surviving?_

This was different. He had been forced to play God with his soldiers' lives. _Sorry Kaidan, you don't get to live. You will never get the chance to grow old or have a family or make a difference in the world. Why you and not Ashley? Because I'm the Commander, so clearly, I know best._ He knew that by 'choosing' Ashley he had been saving more people numerically, but that justification didn't change the growing sense of self-loathing. He was just some no-account backwater farming colonist. His defining trait was the ability to endure while those around him, people he loved and people he was responsible for, perished.

 _Stop._ He took a deep breath, taking all of the self-pity and feelings of worthlessness and locking them away. He'd had his moment of indulgence, wallowing in what-ifs and regret. He could not afford to lose himself in grief and anger. Time would heal all wounds. And if it didn't, he had plenty of other scars to keep this one company.

He snapped out of it as the others gradually filed in. Everyone looked exhausted except for Wrex, who simply looked disgruntled. Then again, Shepard wasn't sure he had seen the krogan look 'gruntled'. He snorted, drawing the questioning gazes of his friends. _Now I'm laughing to myself at made-up words. I need to sleep._

He had called this meeting as soon as they all managed to escape Chakwas' clutches on the promise of no athletics. Only a couple of hours had passed since Virmire, but he knew time was precious. Saren had a clear destination in mind and was probably heading there right now. They needed to stop him and find this Conduit before it was too late.

Ashley was the first one to break the silence. "I want to apologize for what I said, Commander. I know it was an impossible decision. And don't get me wrong, I'm grateful to be here; I'm just pissed off. I feel responsible, you know?" She ran her fingers through her hair, shaking out some leftover leaves and metal fragments. "We need to get that son of a bitch."

"Yes we do. Kaidan's death was his fault. Not yours, and not mine." He saw Tali cock her head at him.

Ashley smiled slightly. "You don't really believe that shit, do you?"

 _Not one bit._ "I do. It doesn't matter what we're feeling right now or how long it takes for us to accept it, that's the truth." The words tasted like ash coming out, but he knew she needed to hear them. She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms, her face less knotted than it had been.

"In any case, we need to find out where Saren is going."

"Have the visions cleared up any?" Liara reviewed her notes as she listened to the meeting.

"No, nothing useful at least."

She squirmed in her chair a little. "Well, I might be able to make sense of them. I am a Prothean expert, after all. If we joined minds, perhaps my research could reveal something you may have overlooked."

Shepard shrugged. "It can't hurt." He paused. "Can it?"

"No, the process should be smooth for you. Less so for me, but nothing to be worried about."

"Very well." He stood up. "Let's get this over with. The sooner the better."

Liara rose as well and closed her eyes. "I will need you to relax, Commander." _Here we go, another big speech about how the universe is all connected blah blah blah._ He remembered joining with that asari on Feros, figuring it was some kind of ritual for these things. Liara's eyes snapped open, pooled in darkness. "Embrace eternity!" _Oh shit. I guess we're doing this-_

His thoughts were suddenly not his own. It felt as if someone was flipping through the pages of his brain and he was a helpless passenger for the ride. He did notice that every sensation and memory he encountered was his own, not Liara's. After an unknown amount of time, it seemed she found what she was looking for. He relived the visions from the beacons from start to finish, though now that they were already imprinted in his mind he thankfully did not experience the same trauma from before.

The connection severed abruptly. Shepard groggily blinked, the world around him taking a bit to come back into focus. Liara sat down, holding a hand to her head.

"Goddess! That was…intense!"

"Right? Did you see anything?"

"Wow. I do not know how you managed to retain that. A lesser mind would have been completely destroyed."

He pointed his thumbs at himself. "You hear that guys? I don't have a lesser mind." The collective eyeroll he received made him chuckle. _We need a little levity. We can all brood tonight._ "So, anything useful?"

"There was so much. It was a warning sent across the galaxy about the Reapers, but it was too late. There were glimpses of places…Ilos!" She jerked up. "I recognize that planet from my research! And it just so happens that Ilos is accessible through the Mu Relay. That has to be where Saren's going!"

"And where the Conduit is. We have to go there, now."

"We can't, Shepard." Garrus shook his head. "Saren will be expecting us. He'll have his entire fleet guarding the planet. We'll need a fleet of our own if we're going to break through his lines."

"I'll talk to the Council, but if they refuse to help, we'll have to make do on our own. We'll find a way." Shepard turned back to Liara. "Are you sure about Ilos?" He didn't receive an answer. "Liara?"

She started, her head springing up while her eyes remained unfocused. "Huh? Ilos? Yes, it is definitely Ilos." She stifled a yawn. "I am sorry. The joining has sapped my remaining strength, I believe. I need to go lie down, if I may be excused."

"Sleeping on the job." Shepard clicked his tongue and feigned disapproval. "Go on. In fact, we should all get some rest. Dismissed."

Wrex walked up to Shepard while the others left the room. Tali gave them some space, waiting for Shepard near the exit and playing with something on her omnitool. Shepard smiled. "You gave us a scare there. I don't think Tali is ever going to forgive you for that."

"I'm the one that got shot. You're lucky this Saren thing is so important, or I wouldn't be sitting so peacefully in the same room with Williams."

"I appreciate your restraint. And I will have a talk with her about that, just…not now."

"Yeah." Wrex crossed his arms. "Look, things got pretty heated down there. I still think it was the wrong decision to destroy everything, but I respect you Shepard. I'll follow you until this thing is finished. You've earned that much."

"We'll have Saren's head soon enough. You'll be really happy you didn't kill me."

Wrex smirked. "We'll see." He nodded at the quarian as he passed. "Tali." She ignored him, engrossed in the computer on her arm.

"Oh, I forgot to mention, she's giving you the silent treatment."

Wrex grunted. "Quarians and their feelings."

Tali looked at Shepard as the krogan left. "I am not overreacting."

"I never said you were." She sniffed, but whatever she was going to say was cut off as he wrapped her in a hug. Her hands hesitantly closed around him as well.

"What's this for?"

"Nothing. Just because I can." He placed his head against hers, the proximity giving him faint hints as to the outline of her face. He watched the corners of her eyes crinkle slightly, the only hint that she was smiling at him. He felt the weight of the mission tug at him, and he stated the obvious as he drank in the silver glow of her irises. "We're getting close to the end, now."

"I suppose we are." He felt his breath catch as she pulled him nearer. He let his hands trail over the rough fabric and metal of her suit, tracing a line from her neck to the small of her back. The corners of his mouth tugged up as a shiver accompanied his touch. _I'm hopeless. The most beautiful girl I've ever met is someone I've never actually seen. And it's perfect._

"What are we going to do when this is all over?"

Tali nestled her head in his shoulder. "I don't know, Shepard."

"You don't have to call me Shepard, you know."

"Oh? Um…Commander, then?"

He laughed. "No, I meant, I don't call you Zorah. I'd like if you'd use my first name, if you'd want. I guess." He reddened. _That sounded weird._

"Oh!" She tapped a finger against his chest. "I've seen your name written, but I don't know if it translated right, or what the pronunciation would be." She cleared her throat. "Zhahan?"

"John."

She made a face. "What is that at the beginning?" She tried again, failing once more to replicate the 'J' sound. It sounded like the French version of his name, with a slurred 'Z' once more.

He kept from cracking up and slowly taught her how to form the word until she got it right.

"John."

"There you go!"

She giggled. "I hope you're happy now that I've made a fool out of myself, John." For some reason, when she said his name his heart leapt in his chest. He could barely remember the last time someone had used his first name in a familiar setting.

"I don't want to lose you after we stop Saren, Tali. But that's probably what's going to happen, isn't it?" _What the hell, Shepard._

Her fingers dug into his shirt. "Don't say that."

"I don't expect the Migrant Fleet would really welcome a human, even just as a frequent visitor. Besides, I don't want to just be a visitor to you. Once you return, will you even be able to leave the ships?" His hidden worries about what would happen once the mission was over were bubbling out.

"Of course. Quarians go on missions all the time, and we have to trade with local settlements that we pass through…" She trailed off. "No, not really."

He didn't know why he had chosen now to talk about the elephant in the room. He took a deep breath, catching the familiar scent of her realk as he did so. "I don't want you to have to choose between your people and me."

"I can't just abandon them, John. They need me. Quarians only have each other to look out for them in the galaxy. I love my people. And if I left, and you…well, you know. Grew tired of me, or something happened to us." Her voice caught as she said that, and she wouldn't look at him. "I wouldn't be able to go back to them."

"You aren't worried about growing tired of me, then?"

She shook her head. "Quarians mate for life, for fairly obvious reasons. From what I've seen, humans are not the same. Sometimes you do, and sometimes you don't. I can't take such a chance on a maybe." Her arms dropped to her sides, and she started shaking. "I'm sorry, John."

"Then don't take a chance." He caressed the sides of her helmet, making her look at him. "I love you, Tali'Zorah nar Rayya." The words came tumbling out of his mouth before he could stop them. _Didn't think I'd be saying that when we started this conversation._ Still, he knew it was true, and now that he had forced the issue, he couldn't leave anything unsaid. Even though they had only known each other for less than a year, he couldn't imagine what his life would be like if she weren't in it. Actually, he could, but the thought terrified him. "Like I said, I don't want to have to make you choose. We should try to work out some way for you to keep both. But if it can't be avoided, I'm sorry. I'm too selfish to let you walk away without trying to change your mind. I need you. And I promise I will never leave you."

Tali looked shocked by his passionate speech. _I might have gone overboard._

"You love me?"

"With all my heart."

She pulled on his wrists, taking his hands from her face, and seem to consider something incredibly interesting in his palms. His pulse raced as he waited for her to say something. _Why did I have to say something now?_ After an eternity and a half, she shook her head. His stomach plummeted into the ground. Her soft whisper caught him off-guard. "I love you too." Her laughter was full of surprise and joy. "I love you, John'Shepard vas Normandy nar Mindoir. I can't give you up. I just can't. We'll see what happens when I return from my Pilgrimage, but if they won't let us be together, then I won't stay. You have taken a part of me that I can't live without."

Shepard grinned. "You mean it?"

She pressed her helmet against his forehead. "Yes, I mean it, you stupid bosh'tet. How much more obvious could I be?"

He crushed her against him, picking her up and spinning her around as she squealed in protest. It didn't matter what was lying in wait in the future or what memories would try to drag him down; as long as he had her, he was untouchable.

* * *

"Commander."

Shepard groaned, rolling over to look at the clock. "Go away, Joker."

"Sure, let me just hop up out of my chair, maybe I'll make it to the airlock before my legs break."

"Joker?"

"What?"

"I'm real happy that you are confident enough in yourself to poke fun at your brittle bones, but why did you wake me up?"

"Right. The Council's on the line."

"Fuck." He rose out of bed, yawning as he started methodically pulling on his clothes. "If it had been anything else, I could have gone back to sleep."

"Well, I don't know about anything else-"

"Shut up. Tell them I'll be down in five."

Shepard splashed some water on his face and got in the elevator, trying to bring life into his deathly pallor. He knew his report would make waves on the Citadel, but he hadn't expected to hear from them two hours after his submission. He doubted that was a good sign.

The familiar visages appeared in his communications hub. "Commander Shepard."

"Councilor Tevos."

Sparatus looked as pleased to see Shepard as always. "Our time is valuable, Commander. We are not here to wait on your beck and call."

Shepard bowed mockingly. "Sorry for having to sleep after a mission like that. I am only human, after all, though I know you'd rather I wasn't."

"That is not-"

Tevos interrupted, glaring at Sparatus. "We understand and appreciate your prompt arrival. I saw that one of your team regrettably did not survive the mission. I am sorry for your loss."

Shepard inclined his head in acknowledgement. "How do you deal with this guy every day? You seem to have to apologize an awful lot for him. And here I thought us humans were supposed to be the hot-headed ones."

The asari's eyes sparkled with amusement as Sparatus puffed out his chest, clearly about to go on a tirade, but she staved him off. "That is neither here nor there. The point of this meeting is to discuss your request for additional support on Ilos, not to point fingers at each other."

Shepard couldn't help letting out a low chuckle. "Let me guess. You don't believe me, and you won't send help."

Valern ruffled through a file as he spoke for the first time. "There is simply not enough physical evidence to back up your claims. This threat of 'Reapers,' if true, is dire indeed, but we cannot mobilize forces based on the word of a single asset."

That gave Shepard an idea. "One moment. I may have something." He pinged Liara on his omnitool, tapping his foot impatiently while the line rang.

Eventually, Liara picked up. "Hello?" she murmured, speaking through a yawn.

"Liara, did you happen to take any recordings during Sovereign's speech of doom?"

"No, just pictures, though I transcribed the entire conversation."

Shepard sighed. "Alright, thanks." The salarian councilor looked at him condescendingly.

"Speech of doom?"

"Yeah, yeah. Look, you didn't believe me when I told you Saren was a traitor. I'm not crazy, and I have proven myself to be a capable member of the Spectres." Sparatus snorted, but Shepard ignored him. "Eventually, you're going to have to take something that I say on faith."

"There's an old human saying that fits this circumstance, I believe." Sparatus said with a leer. "Even a broken clock is right twice a day."

"Ha ha, fuck you."

"Excuse me?"

"I said fuck-"

Valern cleared his throat, quieting their disagreement. "We hold the power that affects trillions of lives. We cannot make our decisions based on faith alone, Commander."

Tevos seemed to be contemplating something, her gaze never leaving Shepard as the bickering continued. He thought it was odd that Valern was the one to break them apart instead of her, who was normally so concerned with being diplomatic. She raised her hand, drawing the attention of her counterparts. "Councilors. I think we should give Shepard what he wants."

Sparatus slammed his fist into something offscreen. "Are you insane?"

"We'll have your fleet assembled by the time you return to the Citadel. We'll discuss further plans upon your return."

Valern placed his hands behind his back, his expression unreadable. "Very well. We will await your arrival, Spectre."

The connection severed as Sparatus opened his mouth to further protest, cutting off whatever he was going to say. Shepard didn't quite understand what had just happened. He was sure they were going to refuse aid, and they had. So why did they suddenly change their minds?"

"That was kinda weird. I guess it's still good news, though?"

Shepard squinted at the ceiling. "You're not supposed to listen in on these meetings, Joker."

"And you're not supposed to blow up a nuke on garden worlds but you don't hear me complaining."

"I do hear you complaining. A lot."

Joker grumbled something unintelligible before responding in an audible tone. "Should I set a course for the Citadel then?"

"Yes. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can leave to catch Saren."


	25. Chapter 25: Burn

**Hello! I'm not going to lie, I struggled for a while with writing this chapter. I wasn't sure where I wanted it to go and what all I wanted to include in it. You'll know what I mean by the end. However, I'm happy with the result, and I hope you will be as well. Thank you so much for your feedback, I live to read your reviews and get your opinions on the story! You guys are the best.**

* * *

Tali sat on a bench next to Ashley, looking at the pristine water of the Presidium Lake as they waited for Shepard to come out of his meeting. Liara lay on the ground next to them, absorbed in her books. Garrus and Wrex were off next to the edge, apparently having a rock-skipping contest. Tali had no idea where they found rocks to throw in their immaculate surroundings.

She was still reeling from Shepard's confession of love. Quarians were more emotional than most races, prone to snap decisions based on their feelings and to fall for the cliché 'love at first sight.' The months before they'd become a couple had been enough for her to know she would never feel the way she felt about Shepard for anyone else, and that had been before he had expressed any interest in her in return. Now…now she was sure he had ruined her for any other person in the galaxy. And she had been willing to give that up, because the thought of living without him was only tolerable if she were with her people.

She smiled as she remembered her mother telling the story about how her father had fallen for her. He had proposed in under three weeks; it seemed recklessness was inherited. Despite their conversation, doubts flickered across her mind. He could just be trying to get her to stay. But Shepard would never do that; she wouldn't love him if he was that kind of person. Still, what if she wasn't the one for him? What if he found someone else a few years down the road? Then she would just be one lone quarian with no one to turn to, adrift without her heart or her family. _Ugh, I'm going to make myself sick just thinking about it._

Ashley nudged her, drawing her from her spiral of worry. "You look like something's on your mind. You haven't said anything for a while."

"Oh, it's nothing."

She swiveled and faced her, sitting cross-legged on the bench. "It's boy trouble, isn't it?"

Tali was perplexed. "How did you-"

"I grew up with three younger sisters. I don't need to see your face to know that tone. Heard it a thousand times, especially with Sara. So, what's up?"

"Um, well, it's complicated."

"Has Shepard hurt you in any way?" Ashley asked, her menacing attitude making her intentions clear if Tali said yes.

"What? No! Nothing like that." Tali didn't normally involve other people in her personal affairs, but she liked Ashley. Maybe she could help. "I'm worried. If I stay with Shepard after my Pilgrimage, I will most likely not be welcomed back to the Fleet. While that will hurt, I am okay with it. Nothing could hurt more than the other option, you know?" She stopped when she saw Ashley's smile. "What is it?"

"If you're worried that Shepard might someday leave you or something, then you are out of your damn mind."

"I never said that," Tali spluttered.

"That's where your thought was going though, right?" Ashley ruffled the top of Tali's hood. "Oh Tali. That man is so in love with you it's painful to the rest of us. You already said it would be better to lose the Fleet than to lose Shepard. So, stay then, silly girl." Satisfied with her answer, Ashley turned back around and leaned against the wall once more, her eyes closing as she enjoyed the beautiful Presidium air.

 _Well, alright then._ Even though the delivery had been more abrupt then she had expected, Ashley had said exactly what she needed to hear. It wasn't that she needed to be convinced again; she just wanted a little encouragement that she was making the right choice. She peacefully settled back into her spot, noticing that Garrus and Wrex were unsuccessfully trying to sneak away from the lake. She laughed when she saw the broken window. _I guess someone won the contest._

Shepard got off the elevator, his stiff posture speaking volumes. _Uh oh._

They all gathered around him, eager to hear the news. "When do we leave, Commander?" Garrus asked.

"We don't. It was all a trick to lure us here. The Normandy's been grounded; all they are doing is tightening the defenses around the Mass Relays." He scuffed the ground with his foot. "I should have known something was up when they changed their minds so quickly. Damnit!"

"That's the Council for you," Wrex rumbled.

"Politicians," Ashley spat. "What do we do now?"

"I don't know. The Normandy is the only ship that has a chance of reaching Ilos' surface undetected, and they'll be watching it like hawks I'm sure. If we are going to stop Saren, we need her up and running." Shepard glanced at his omnitool, checking a message that flashed across the screen. "Hm. We may have something."

"What is it?" Tali fell in beside Shepard as he approached the taxi stand.

"Anderson reached out. He was cryptic, but he wants to meet at Flux and discuss things. He knows what's at stake; he's always believed me. Maybe he'll have a way out of this mess."

* * *

Tali started bobbing along to the music the moment they stepped into the somewhat seedy establishment. While she wasn't the most outgoing of individuals, dancing was something she could never resist. _It's been so long since I've gotten the chance…_ She had to pull herself away from the crowd, casting forlorn glances at the writhing bodies. _Maybe later._ She couldn't imagine Shepard would have difficulty joining her considering his grace on the battlefield. Dancing was a hundred times easier than dodging Colossus legs.

Anderson waved them over to his table in the corner. The nearby window afforded a decent view of the Citadel, the buildings stretching an unfathomable distance down the length of the arm. They clustered around him, dragging over extra chairs as needed. Wrex decided to simply lean against the glass. His giant size would have taken up a whole edge to himself, so it was probably for the best.

Shepard's friend nodded at them. "Glad you could make it. We have a lot to talk about."

Shepard folded his arms on the table. "You knew what they were planning, didn't you?"

"Before you say anything else, as soon as I heard they cut off my communications until you were already docked. There was nothing I could do."

"I understand." Shepard grinned. "It's good to see you, whatever the circumstances are. How's life on the Citadel?"

"Too damn boring. I wasn't meant for a desk job, Shepard." Anderson leaned forward, his face eager. "How has the Normandy treated you? Is she performing well?"

"Like a dream. I'm sorry for how that whole business went down."

"Nonsense. It had to be done." He took a sip from his beer. "So, from what I read in the report, we need to get you back on the Normandy, pronto."

"It doesn't matter if I can get to the ship. They have the Normandy on lockdown; we won't be able to leave."

Anderson swirled his glass around. "I may have a way around that. I know that Udina's computer can override the hold they have on your ship. All I need is a minute inside his office and we'll be good to go."

Shepard shook his head. "We still can't go anywhere near it without being arrested by C-Sec, and we'll need a full crew to pilot her. I doubt any Alliance soldier would be willing to go rogue on their Commander's hunch."

"You underestimate the power of your charisma." Anderson laughed. "I've already asked. Every single one of your crew is already in the ship on standby, waiting to take off as soon as we put the plan in motion."

Garrus frowned. "How did they already board? I thought no one was allowed near the Normandy."

"Actually, the order is to keep Shepard and his 'band of mercenaries' away. It doesn't say anything about the rest of the crew. They all went under the guise of maintenance and retrieving belongings and such."

"Band of mercenaries?" Ashley huffed. "That's a new low."

"What's wrong with mercenaries?" Wrex shrugged. "I think I'm a perfectly reasonable fellow to be around."

"Uh huh."

Tali smirked. "The world's first quarian mercenary in centuries. Dad would be so proud."

"Oh, you're definitely not alone on that count," Garrus said.

"Really?"

"There was this one quarian, Kalo'Razal, who was number one on the Citadel's most wanted list for almost half a year."

Tali gaped. "You're kidding? What did he do?"

"There was a hanar kingpin working out of Omega-"

Anderson rapped his fist on the table, quieting the chatter. "Are they always like this?"

"Pretty much." Shepard patted Tali and Garrus, the two sitting on either side of him. "It's endearing once you get used to it."

"Get used to it? I'll bet money you're worse than all of them combined," Anderson chuckled. All five of Shepard's companions nodded in unison.

"I think this constitutes as a mutiny." Shepard looked wounded, turning to each of his team. "Et tu Brute?"

"Here we go, chasing another rabbit," Anderson said. Tali had no idea what that meant but figured now was not the time to interrupt with a random question once more. "For this to work, I'll need backup to make sure I'm not stopped by the security outside Udina's office."

Shepard chewed his lip. "Does anyone want to volunteer? It'll mean being left behind on the Citadel and probably being charged with treason. By the way, you're okay with being charged with treason, right Anderson?"

"It'll be something new to add to the resume."

Ashley sat forward. "I'll do it."

Shepard didn't argue, knowing there was more to this than simply taking one for the team. He clasped hands with her. "We'll see you when we get back. This time, we'll be sure to take video; that should get everything dropped, I would think."

"Good luck Commander."

Anderson drained the last of his drink. "Okay. Nothing left but to do it, then."

As he stood up, Shepard shook his hand, pulling him in for a pat on the back. "I can't tell you how much it means that you believe me, sir. It's been an honor serving with you." He broke off and snapped into a salute, which Ashley quickly copied. Anderson saluted back, his face a mix of emotions.

"Go kick some ass, Shepard."

"Yes sir."

* * *

Ashley smiled at the men guarding Udina's door. "Peterson! How've you been? I haven't seen you since basic!" She knew he'd had a crush on her since their first week on the force. _This will be a piece of cake._

"Ashley! I mean, Williams. How, ah, are you?" Peterson stammered, his cheeks turning crimson. His two compatriots gave each other knowing looks, clearly enjoying the show. She walked right up to Peterson, shaking his hand.

"It's great to see you!" She surreptitiously glanced back, watching as Anderson advanced on them in the middle of a small crowd of ambassadors. She positioned herself as close to the guards as possible, readying for the ensuing fight. They would need to be quick and decisive; otherwise, things might get ugly, and since they weren't using lethal force, it probably wouldn't go their way.

"Listen, I'm really sorry about this."

"About what?" Peterson's dumb grin remained on his face after Ashley knocked him out cold with a well-placed canon punch to the jaw. Anderson leapt forward and wrestled with the second while Ashley wrapped her arm around a throat. She continuously walked backwards, keeping the guard unbalanced until the lack of oxygen made him fall limp against her. It was about at this point that the bystanders started screaming, running for security. They rushed in the office, Ashley placing herself at the door while Anderson advanced on an angry Udina.

"What are you doing here, Anderson? You are not allowed in here. I am-" His sentence was cut short as Anderson slammed his face into the desk. Ashley sniggered.

"Nice one." Her attention was diverted as the doors slid open, revealing two more C-Sec officers. Luckily, they hadn't been expecting to see someone standing directly in front of them. She bowled both of them over with a tackle, keeping them occupied as they rolled around on the floor trading blows.

"Hurry up, Anderson!" She gasped as a fist found its way into her stomach.

"I've never been good at this technical crap. Let's see…no, that's the extranet."

A third guard tried to jump over the pile of wrestling bodies, but Ashley grabbed his foot at the last moment, causing him to fall on his chin. She pulled him into the fray, now completely lost in the mass of limbs. It didn't matter, as long as Anderson could get the time he needed.

After several more seconds of this, her body felt like one massive bruise. Still she fought, biting, clawing, punching, and kicking whatever she could see and keeping her three assailants from pinning her limbs down. After a particularly solid connection with her foot, she saw that one of the bodies had stopped resisting. She grabbed the arm around her neck and lifted the guard off the floor, his friend coming along for the ride, and smashed him back down, snapping her head back for extra effect. The loosening grip and loud groan told her she had been successful. She flipped the last enemy on his back, trading places with him, and started pounding her fist into his face until he too stopped moving.

Anderson pumped his fist in the air. "It's done!"

Ashley stayed on her knees, looking at him through the stream of blood pouring from her brow. "Great. Couldn't…have been any quicker, huh."

He radioed Shepard, letting him know the plan had been a success, just as a new regiment entered the scene with their guns drawn. Ashley put her hands on her head, grinning through the pain as they cuffed them behind her back. _It's all up to you guys now._

* * *

Shepard swore when he saw the number of troops watching over the docking bay. Wrex counted at least twenty, all armed. _We'll never get through them without using our weapons._ Even between him and Liara, there weren't enough biotics to keep all of them occupied.

"How are we going to get around them?" Tali asked worriedly. Anderson had just given them the all clear; it was now or never.

Wrex cracked his knuckles, rolling his neck around. "Wait for thirty seconds, then run for it. If you could disable as many guns as possible, I would appreciate it Tali."

Shepard looked confused. "What are you doing?"

"Just give Saren hell for me." He charged, yelling some incoherent battle-cry and firing his shotgun harmlessly at the floor. He put up as strong a barrier as he could muster, easily absorbing the shots from the weapons Tali hadn't reached yet. He leered in satisfaction when he saw the idiots chasing him down the street. He constantly peppered them with annoying biotics, just enough to trip them or keep them off balance. He made sure he didn't slow them down too much, though. He needed them to keep following him away from the docks. _This is too easy. If I could shoot at them, I could take them all singlehandedly. Pathetic._ He even shortened his pace at one point as he was pulling too far ahead of the pyjaks.

 _And we should reach our destination in three, two, one…_ He pulled up short as he barreled straight into C-Sec headquarters. He casually strolled over to the front desk, leaning against it and ignoring the strange looks he got from the receptionists. His pursuers came in shortly after, most of them gasping for air. They trained their guns on him, shouting various orders to stand down and drop his weapons. He let out a low rumble of a laugh, shaking his head slowly back and forth.

"You guys are going to feel really stupid in a couple of minutes." He dropped his guns on the desk. He growled when two of the guards approached him with restraints. "I don't think so. I know my way to the cells. Try that, and you'll have more broken bones than whole ones."

Executor Pallin burst in from further within C-Sec, bewildered at the sight of Wrex. "What is he doing here?" He focused on the twenty or so guards standing behind him. His eyes widened. "Why aren't you guarding the Normandy?"

"Sir, this krogan-"

"GET BACK TO YOUR STATION!" Wrex winked at Pallin as he walked over to the holding area, taking a seat on the wooden beam as the doors locked behind him.

About ten minutes later, his door opened, and Ashley was thrown onto the floor, her hands and feet chained together. Wrex snorted as he helped her to a seat. He could barely see her face through the swelling and bruises, and all the skin on her knuckles was scraped off, leaving a bloody mess.

She raised an eyebrow at him, or at least he thought she did. "Fancy seeing you here."

* * *

The Normandy zipped through the Mass Relay, speeding away from the Citadel and safely out of the clutches of the Council. Tali breathed a sigh of relief; she couldn't believe they had actually made it. Shepard let go of the white-knuckle grip he had on the back of Joker's chair. He looked at the remaining members of his squad, gathered together in the cockpit.

"At least I won't have to choose who comes with me in the Mako this time." He pressed something on Joker's console, turning on the PA system.

"This is Commander Shepard. By this point, I'm sure you all know that we are officially considered traitors to the Alliance. To humanity. To everyone, really. But none of that matters if we don't stop Saren. The future of the galaxy rests with us. If we fail, there won't be anyone left to condemn our actions. Your bravery today has given us a chance. I am proud to call myself your Commander; I couldn't have asked for a more loyal and capable crew. Shepard out." He crossed his arms, looking uncomfortable. "I hate making speeches like that. It never comes out the way I see it in my head."

Joker rotated his chair around, his hand firmly placed in a salute. "It was good enough for me, Commander."

"Thanks. Set a course for Ilos." Shepard sighed. "It'll be at least a day before we get there. Do whatever you need to do to prepare. We'll need to be at our best when the time comes."

"You know, I think there's still a few bottles of turian brandy in the mess," Garrus said, striding purposefully towards the stairs.

Liara hopped into pace behind him. "Hopefully they will have some levo-based intoxication liquid. I believe I might be in need of one."

"You? Drink? I would have never guessed…" Their words trailed off as they disappeared out of sight. Tali fidgeted with the small package in her pocket as Shepard looked at her questioningly.

"So, what do you want to do? I'm too worried about Saren to come up with any good suggestions." They fell in together as their feet naturally led them to the lift.

She pressed the box into his palm. "Here."

"What is it?"

"It's, um…well, a type of soap. Just…could you shower?"

They had reached the elevator by this point and were slowly riding it to Shepard's cabin. He gave her a wry smile. "Do I smell that bad?"

"No no no, that isn't, erm, what I meant. It's a special type of soap, you see." _Keelah. I feel like I'm inside a furnace._ She was sweating as if she were in the middle of a battle. "Look, don't ask any questions. Just do it, alright?"

"Alright, alright." Shepard quirked an eyebrow. "Will you be joining me, or is there another reason you rode up here as well?"

Tali giggled nervously. "Not yet."

"What was that?"

"I, ah…" The inside of Tali's head was just one, loud, unbroken scream. "Nothing. I didn't say anything. Nothing is what I said and hey look, we're here!" She gestured at his room.

"Yep."

"So why don't you go do that, and I'll just wait here." She kept her gaze at Shepard's feet and wrung her hands together furiously.

"Okay. I'll see you in a bit, I suppose." Shepard slowly closed the door to the bathroom, still giving her an odd look until it was shut. She immediately started to shuffle around the room, using a new tool she had installed on their latest visit to the Citadel before everything went crazy. It wasn't nearly as effective as a full room decontamination unit, but it should do the trick for a limited exposure. She went ahead and began her injections of antibiotics and immuno-boosters as she continued manually scrubbing Shepard's cabin. _What am I doing; this is insane. Even with all of these precautions, there is still a chance I'll die if I take off my mask._ At the same time, she knew this is exactly what she wanted. This was the end. They might all be dead in twenty-four hours; she was going to make sure that if that happened, she wouldn't have any regrets.

Satisfied that she had prepared as best as she could, she sat back down on the bed, her feet bouncing. Even though she wasn't even planning on any physical contact with Shepard, her heart was about to explode in her chest from nerves. It had been so long since she had seen her own face; what if she wasn't appealing? Shepard had already assured her long ago that he didn't care what she looked like, but it was still a concern in her mind. She wanted him to _want_ her.

Shepard stepped out of the bathroom with a new set of clothes. Tali still found it funny when he wasn't wearing his armor or his official Alliance casual wear. He looked like a completely different person. He sniffed the air. "Did you spray some air freshener? Are you sure you aren't just dropping hints that I smell?"

"Just come over here." Now that he was in front of her, she felt herself calming down. He was her Shepard. He would accept her for who she was, no matter what. He sat down beside her, still looking extremely confused. She took a deep breath.

"We might not come back from this, you know. There's so much that could go wrong, so much riding on us…so, I wanted to share something with you."

Shepard's eyes grew big in surprise. "Are you saying what I think you're saying? Tali, isn't this dangerous? I don't want you to risk your health because you think you have to prove something to me. You don't."

"I know, John." She smiled at him. "You are the keeper of my soul. I want this. I want you to have a piece of me that no one else does." She raised a shaky finger to the clasps at her visor, going through the lengthy process of unsealing her mask. After almost an entire minute, the last safety piece was released. She clicked the final connector, and a sharp hiss escaped as her cage opened for the first time in front of another person. The last time someone had seen her face was when her mother had helped her into a new suit after living in a bubble for the first few years of life. Her hands were too unsteady to lift the visor off completely, causing her grip to slip. Shepard gently gripped her wrists, helping her remove the purple screen.

Even in the dim light of the cabin, she had to blink several times before her sensitive eyes adjusted to their new environment without her tinted glass. She took a deep breath, amazed at the strange feeling of breathing outside of the suit. The air was cool as it traveled to her lungs, completely different from what she was familiar with as the air inside her suit was almost always heated by her body before she breathed it in.

She locked her eyes with Shepard. He was frozen, staring at her without saying a word. She went to scratch the back of her helmet, embarrassed, and found her hand brushing the side of her cheek. Having the rough material slide along her skin was the most indescribable sensation in the world. She let her fingers travel farther back, bringing a few tendrils of her thick hair out of their confinement. While she did this, Shepard still hadn't moved or spoken.

She licked her dry lips as she went to break the silence. "I…hi."

His face finally cracked into a half-smile. "You are so beautiful, Tali."

"Do you mean that?" She couldn't quite believe him. She had to look an absolute mess, being stuck inside her suit for so long.

He drew her to a small mirror on the wall, placing her in front of it. "You tell me." She barely recognized herself. Her markings on her forehead stretched from her brow and vanished into her black mane. Two silver circles stared back at her, looking confused by what they saw. She knew that quarians and humans shared many physical traits, but she hadn't realized just how closely she would resemble one.

She turned back to Shepard as he reached forward, running a finger along a marking on her cheek. "Are these tattoos?" His skin set her on fire. Before she knew what she was doing, she had flung him back on the bed, pressing her lips against his. Every new feeling sent her farther into the flames, fueling her passion until coherent thoughts were lost in the taste of Shepard's skin. Somewhere in the back of her head, a voice was desperately trying to remind her that she wasn't properly prepared for something like this, but she was beyond reason. She pressed herself against him, pinning him down as she abandoned herself in his kiss.

Soon, much too soon, he softly broke contact and pushed her away slightly. He was breathing hard, clearly wanting to continue, but he managed to gain control of himself. "Are…whew…can you do this? Is this safe?"

She laughed. "Not at all. Oh wow. That was definitely not what I had planned."

Shepard reached out and played with a strand of her hair. "Your face is so expressive when you talk. Like how you crinkled your nose right then when I said that. How have I been missing this all this time? And your voice, it sounds completely different without the mask." She nuzzled into his hand, relishing every moment of touch. "You are beautiful."

"You said that already."

"I don't have the words to describe you, Tali. How you make me feel, how a single glance from you can turn my legs to jelly. You are beautiful. I don't think anything else would fit as well as that."

She felt tears start to well up as the timer in her omnitool went off. "I don't want to go back, John. I don't know that I can."

He wiped away the streaks of water with his thumb, his smile soft and encouraging. "I'll be right here with you. One day, we will figure something out, but until then, I'll be here. It doesn't matter what separates us, be it time or space or an environmental suit. You will have me."

She stole one last kiss from him before he helped her seal the visor back on her suit. Her world once more consisted of violet shades and distant experiences, cut off from everything around her. She couldn't help herself; she cried and cried, curling up with her head on Shepard's lap as he held her and whispered in her ear. She didn't know what he was saying, but the sound of his voice was enough to keep her from falling into despair. She couldn't believe that earlier that day she had doubted his love for her. She wouldn't be able to function without him in her life, not after today. _My soul's soul. My saera._


	26. Chapter 26: Constant Vigilance

**Hey everyone! With the Ilos plot, we're coming to the beginning of the end of the first game. I can't quite believe it. Thanks for sticking with the story, and as always, I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

"We're coming up on Ilos, Commander."

Tali stirred, wincing at the cramp in her neck. _Where am I?_ Her shoulder bumped into someone else's arm as she tried to sit up, startling her. Taking in Shepard's still sleeping form, she remembered talking for hours about everything and nothing at the same time. What she couldn't recall was actually falling asleep. Her head was still swimming, and from her suit's temperature reading, she didn't think it was from sleep. _Great. Fever's already setting in._

Joker called out once more on the speaker. "Commander…are you there?"

Tali poked Shepard in the ribs, attempting to wake him up, but she might as well have been prodding a corpse. "John…hey," she muttered.

"Is that Tali?"

 _Well, shit._ "Hi Joker."

"Oh damn. Good for you guys."

"It's not what you think."

"Sure, sure. Just let him know we'll be there soon."

Thoroughly embarrassed, she shook Shepard more violently. "Get up, you big lump." Finally, he showed signs of life, stretching and slowly opening his eyes. His mouth turned into a big smile when he saw Tali.

"Hey beautiful."

If her face hadn't already been burning from her fever or from Joker, it was surely burning now. "Well, um, thank you. I have my mask on though, so…you know."

"That doesn't mean you're not beautiful, because you most certainly are." He stroked her arm, which didn't help at all with her flustered state. If she let him keep sweet talking her, she'd never have enough focus to talk about the mission.

"Joker commed and said we are almost at Ilos."

"I see." Shepard's mask slipped back into place, the lines on his face hardening into steel. In an instant, John was gone, replaced with the fearsome Commander Shepard. "You should get suited up."

"Got that covered." He raised an eyebrow, breaking out of his armor once more at her silly joke.

"You know what I meant." She coughed into her elbow, interrupting what he was going to say. "Hey, are you okay?"

"I'll be fine. Just reacting like I knew I would. Nothing to worry about, it won't affect the mission."

"I'll worry anyway. Go on; I have to prepare as well."

"See you in a bit."

* * *

The ceiling had an interesting pattern printed on the tile. The red blended almost seamlessly with the gold, catching the light and reflecting it in a rich ambience. There was one flaw, however. A crack in the stone spread across the length of a dozen or so squares, centered directly above the chairs the Councilors were seated in. _That's fitting._

Ashley stifled a yawn, knowing that the movement would exacerbate her injuries. She, Anderson, and Wrex had been interrogated by the esteemed Council for the last four and a half hours. Having exhausted her entertainment resources, including the ceiling, Ashley was left with nothing else to do as the buffoons continued their endless questioning about Shepard.

The salarian folded his twig-like arms, glaring disapprovingly at Anderson. "Do you really expect us to believe that Shepard would risk his reputation, his life, and that of his crew, on this fantasy? Even if he does believe his wild stories, I highly doubt that a respected member of the Alliance would fall for children's tales. There is more to this, and I know you know what it is. You must tell us, Captain Anderson. You are only making this worse for you and your…companions."

Ashley cut off whatever Anderson's reply would have been. "Captain, we have to tell them."

He looked at her like she was insane. "What are you talking about, Williams?"

"There's no need to pretend anymore. Shepard's already gone; we might as well try to make it easier for ourselves and tell them the truth."

The Councilors all leaned forward eagerly. "Shut up," Sparatus spat at Anderson as he opened his mouth again. "Tell us everything. Now."

"You see…" She adjusted in her seat, reveling in how they waited on her every word. "Shepard, his real goal isn't about stopping Saren."

"The hell it isn't!" Anderson tried to jump up, but the foot restraints kept him pinned in his chair. "Damn it, Williams, what are you doing?"

"Silence! If you have one more outburst, I'll have you gagged until we want to speak to you." Valern composed himself and put on the most insincere smile Ashley had seen in her life. "Please, go on, Chief Williams." Ashley couldn't read krogan expressions, but she was pretty sure Wrex knew what she was doing. _They've wasted enough of our time. Might as well lead them on a small goose chase, if only for a minute or two._

"He's had enough of all the stalling he's gotten from the Council. He decided to get a little payback." She smirked at the asari. "Councilor, I never knew you were such a good stripper in your maiden years. I think it's the number one vid on that one site, what's it called, Wrex?"

"Fornax."

"Ah, that's right." Tevos visibly shrunk in her seat as the other two gave her questioning looks.

"I need to, um, make a few calls." She hurried out of the room, typing furiously into her omnitool. Anderson still looked as confused as when she had started talking, frowning no doubt in an attempt to remember Shepard mentioning anything about posting Tevos' 'interesting' vids. Ashley looked at Wrex, and they winked at each other simultaneously. _Maybe being interrogated won't be so bad._

* * *

Even with the Normandy's stellar stealth systems, evading detection through the geth armada surrounding Ilos would be nearly impossible. Luckily, they had a certain recent flight school graduate who excelled at attempting the impossible. The only thing Joker did better than boasting about his flying skills was actually flying. As they weaved around the enemy with perhaps a little more style than was necessary, their radar picked up Saren's ship's unique signature on the planet's surface. They zeroed in on the signal and began planning the drop as they approached.

Navigator Pressly frowned as he sifted through several charts of the terrain. "There's no place to land the Mako near Saren, Commander. We need at least a hundred yards of open ground to keep the thing from crashing, and the most I can find is twenty."

"How close can you get us?"

"There's a spot a few clicks north."

Garrus joined Pressly at the console, aggressively pushing some buttons without knowing their function. "There has to be a landing zone somewhere. Check again."

"There isn't! I've already double-checked. Stop pressing things." Pressly glared at the turian as he reluctantly backed up.

"Saren's been here for who knows how long already. He might have already found the Conduit. We can't afford a delay!"

"Unless we can magically terraform the ground, it's as good as we're going to get."

"I can do it." Joker looked grimly determined. Despite the maneuvers he was performing, he had maintained his air of self-satisfied swagger while skipping through the fleet. The stark contrast worried Tali. She had no idea how risky the drop would be, but if Joker was serious, then it must be suicidal.

"Don't be foolish. That's suicide!" Pressly crossed his arms in a huff. _There. Knew it was suicidal._

Shepard gripped Joker's shoulder. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I can do it."

"Alright." Shepard swept away, bringing his merry band of aliens with him. "We'll be waiting."

"Joker, no one can do this. You're going to kill them."

"Shut up, Pressly. I got this. Just tell me where to go."

Tali felt a twinge of fear as they exited the elevator. The Mako had seen better days. Garrus had tried his best to keep the poor machine in working condition, but the constant fighting and use had taken its toll on the tank. When she opened her door, the hinge only allowed the metal to part about half of its normal distance, and she was pretty sure duct tape was a large portion of the supporting structure for the exhaust pipe. An uncomfortable gash in the seat pinched her legs as she sat down, a souvenir from their misadventure on the asteroid. "I hope this thing holds together," she muttered.

She could imagine how tense the cockpit was right now, but for them, there was only the quiet interior of the Mako. Liara chattered about some Prothean findings she had studied that pertained to Ilos, but most of what she was saying went over everyone's heads. Talking incessantly seemed to be a coping mechanism for the asari, at least when it came to Mako drops.

"Ready, Commander?" Joker asked, breaking up the peaceful atmosphere.

"Just say when."

"Three…two…one…now!"

Shepard flung them out of the cargo bay, diving into the colorless sky of Ilos. Tali caught a glimpse of what looked like Saren glaring back at them before a section of the wall closed him off. They hurtled toward the small patch of flat ground. Tali's teeth involuntarily clenched as the Mako drifted dangerously close to the ruins. The back wheels barely scraped through, missing the giant stone monolith by a fraction of an inch. Once the tank touched down, Shepard poured everything he could into the reverse thrusters, crashing into the wall with a light thump that chipped the glass on one of the headlights. Thankfully, the fall did not damage any other part of the weathered vehicle.

Liara let go of her death grip on Tali's seat, peeking around to look out the windshield. "Did we make it?"

"Seems that way," Shepard said, jumping out to inspect the wall in front of them. Tali and Liara followed him while Garrus stayed inside the turret. Shepard traced the crack that separated the hidden door from the rest of the wall. Tali locked on to the electrical signals connected to the door, following the lines until she found a small, gray pillar that raised about waist-high.

"Here, Shepard. This is the console." She turned it on, but the symbols were completely foreign to her. "Does anyone read this?"

"By the Goddess." Liara excitedly took out her little notebook. "This is Prothean. Let me see…I believe this says something about 'portal', or 'pathway,' perhaps."

Shepard gave them a strange look. "Are you sure that's Prothean? It looks an awful lot like English to me."

"Are you saying you can understand this, Commander?" Liara asked, her enthusiasm tinged with a hint of envy.

"Yeah. This says gate control." Liara scribbled furiously as Shepard read through the interface, navigating until the wall slowly started retreating into the ceiling. A voice started speaking from the console, the language mostly garbled, but what did manage to come out was apparently not recognized by Tali's translator. All she heard was gibberish.

"Do you know what it's saying?" She asked Shepard.

He turned away and headed back to the Mako, looking a little disturbed. "It's talking about the end of the Protheans. I've seen enough in my visions; I don't need another reminder. There's nothing useful, in any case."

By the time the stone groaned back into place, there was no sign of Saren or his geth down the long tunnel. They sped off, knowing the rogue Spectre already had a large lead in what might be the most important race in history.

"Do we have a plan once we find him?" Garrus asked.

"We don't know anything about this Conduit, the ground forces he might have with him, or the terrain of the encounter. I think we'll have to ad lib this one." Shepard chuckled. "It's what we've done so far, mostly, and it's worked pretty well."

Garrus snorted but didn't say anything. Liara was glued to the scenery, drinking in every detail. "Look at the walls! They appear to be some sort of stasis pods!" She was bubbling over with excitement as she looked around the tank. "Do you think there might be some Protheans still alive? The console still had energy…it is possible. Can you imagine? Getting to converse with a live specimen, learning about their culture, what a typical day in the Prothean empire was like to them-"

"LOOK OUT!" Tali cut off Liara's rambling, drawing Shepard's attention back to his driving. He slammed on the brakes, drawing the Mako to a halt as a wall of light cut them off from the rest of the tunnel. The wheels sprayed up some water as the vehicle came to a stop, and the droplets evaporated immediately upon contact with the shimmering structure. Shepard quickly shifted gears, getting ready to reverse away from the obstacle, but a second wall appeared behind them. They were effectively trapped.

Everyone held their breaths, waiting to see if the walls would move. They would be dead for sure if that happened. After a tense couple of seconds with no change, Shepard shrugged. "I guess they want us alive or the walls can't move. Either way, let's hop out and see if we can shut it down."

A section of the tunnel slid away, revealing a person-sized corridor leading away from the trap. "Uh uh. No way," Garrus said. "That screams death hallway. They just want us out of the Mako so we're easier targets."

Shepard shook his head. "I don't think so. They could have thrown up the walls while we were passing through instead, and we wouldn't have had a chance to react. It looks like the light is part of the Prothean ruin, which makes me think that Saren didn't set it up. However, I'm not stupid. Garrus, stay here with the tank. If we aren't back in ten minutes, assume the worst and try to find a way through without us. We need someone alive up here in case it is a trap."

"I won't stay here while you three risk your lives. Why should I stay?"

"You have a decent amount of technology training, mixed in with your knowledge of the Mako and weaponry in general. You have the best chance of anyone of completing the mission alone."

"You're more qualified than I am," the turian argued.

"I'm the only one who can understand Prothean; I have to see if there's some way to disable the barrier." Shepard grinned at Garrus. "Besides, we'll all come back. See you soon."

Garrus frowned at him. "Famous last words. You better come back, or when I die, which would probably be a couple of minutes later, I'm going to kick your ass."

"You could try," Shepard said brightly. He jumped out once more with Tali and Liara, hurriedly entering the suspicious doorway. A sense of dread hit Tali like a tidal wave the moment they passed under the threshold, and she shivered. Shepard and Liara seemed to have experienced something similar, judging from their suddenly clenched muscles and wide eyes.

"What was that? Something feels wrong here," Tali said, needing to know they were in fact in the same boat.

"I feel it too. That cannot be a coincidence." Liara scrunched her brow as she focused past the unease. "Maybe the Protheans had a way to affect emotions remotely. That would explain why it hit all of us simultaneously."

Shepard didn't say anything, continuing a brisk pace as they walked farther into the depths of the ruins. The path opened up abruptly into a huge room, similar to the tunnel where the Mako and Garrus were waiting. Hundreds of stasis pods lined the walls, and in the middle of their walkway, a floating orange interface flickered in and out of existence. Shepard ran straight for it; they had no time to waste, as every second spent on this sidetrack was a second longer for Saren to find the Conduit.

The static form spoke suddenly, its voice filling the large room with ease. "You are not Prothean, but you are not machine either. This eventuality was one of many that was anticipated. It was why we sent our warning through the beacons."

The feeling of dread dissipated within an instant. Tali felt unbalanced, both by the sudden shift in her emotions and the shocking introduction by the interface. Shepard lowered the rifle he had trained on the console. "It looks like some sort of VI. It's talking about the fact that we aren't Protheans or Reapers-"

"I know, Shepard." Liara bounced on her feet. "I can understand it!"

"Really? How?"

The VI filled in the gaps for them. "While you have been on this planet, I studied your communications and incorporated them into my internal language in order to interact with you."

Tali's jaw dropped. "You simulated an entire language from what, maybe a hundred sentences?"

"That is correct."

She inspected the physical aspects of the VI cautiously. "Are you certain you aren't an artificial intelligence?"

"Yes," it replied simply. "My name is Vigil. You are safe here for the moment, but soon, nowhere will be safe."

Shepard crossed his arms. "Yes, we know. Which is why we need to get back out there and capture Saren."

"Saren. That is the one with the taint of indoctrination upon him. He has already submitted to the enemy. You, however, do not contain the stain of the Reapers. Perhaps there is still hope."

The Commander paced, looking impatient. "If you are fighting, or fought, against the Reapers, why are you stalling us now? We might be the only chance to stop Saren!"

Liara glared at Shepard. "This is a functioning Prothean VI! Do you know how important this discovery is?"

Vigil ignored Liara, addressing Shepard's question. "To defeat the Reapers, you must first understand them, or you will make the same mistakes we did. This cycle has lasted for millions of years; it must be broken."

Shepard showed interest in what Vigil was saying. "Do you know how to defeat the Reapers? Did the Protheans discover something?"

Vigil plowed ahead with its tale. "The Citadel was the center of our civilization, as it is with yours, and as it has been for countless civilizations before us. However, this very fact was instrumental in their undoing. The Citadel is an enormous mass relay, one whose destination links to dark space. Once the Citadel is activated, the Reapers will emerge from their slumber, and the cycle will continue as it has for ages.

"This was our fate. The Reapers annihilated our leaders, our central communications, the center of our government, before most even knew there was an invasion. We were crippled. The Reapers hunted us down in isolated packets, methodically combing the galaxy for us world by world until there was nothing left. They had access to all of our maps, census data, records, through the Citadel. They knew everything about us."

Liara was absorbing the story like a sponge, but Shepard's irritation returned. He cut off the VI once more. "Is there a point to this? I don't mean to be an ass, but again, we need to go. The Citadel is a giant trap, and the Protheans were completely wiped out. So HOW do we stop it?"

Vigil was unperturbed by Shepard's outburst, but it was a VI, so it couldn't truly become perturbed. "The Conduit is crucial in the plan. We Protheans were on the verge of discovering the secrets of mass effect technology when the Reapers attacked. Ilos was a top-secret facility. The researchers here were building a small mass relay from scratch, one that linked directly to the Citadel."

"Keelah. The Conduit isn't a weapon. It's a backdoor into the Citadel. If Saren gets in there and gets control…"

Shepard barked out a harsh laugh. "We committed treason just to end up back where we started? Typical." He checked the time on his watch. "Shit, we need to get back, or Garrus will think we all died. Okay Vigil, we need the short version of whatever else you have to say, and quickly."

Vigil complied. "Some of the key scientists at Ilos, when they awoke from stasis, altered the signal that controlled the keepers on the Citadel. When Sovereign attempted to trigger the keepers, they did not respond. This prevented the cycle from continuing, leaving the other Reapers stranded beyond the empty void of the galaxy."

Shepard's eyes widened. "That's what Saren's going to do. He's going to infiltrate the Citadel and bring the Reapers back."

"Correct. He will transfer control over to Sovereign, who will bring the other Reapers back from dark space."

"What can we do to stop it?" Liara still looked at Vigil with wonder, recording the entire event on her omnitool as she listened.

"I have a data file in my console. Take it with you, and upload it to the Citadel's master control unit." Shepard gave Tali a questioning glance, but she shrugged; she'd never heard of such a panel on the Citadel. "It will corrupt the Citadel's security protocols, giving you temporary control over the station. It might be enough to help against Sovereign."

"What master control unit?"

"Saren will lead you to your destination. Follow him through the Conduit."

"Thank you, Vigil." Shepard motioned back the way they came. "Saren's got enough of a head start. Tali, grab that data file. Let's move!"

"Wait!" Liara scrambled over to Vigil, turning around it and inspecting the machine from every angle. "There is so much we could learn, Shepard. If we leave now, it might not be here later. Can we throw away such an opportunity?"

"Liara. There will be no opportunities for anyone to do anything if we don't haul ass."

"I…you are right. I let my emotions cloud my judgement."

"It doesn't matter, we've got to go, now." Tali snatched the data drive, and they sprinted back to Garrus. The giant cannon swiveled around to them as they emerged into the large tunnel; Tali figured they were a hairsbreadth away from accidentally being blown up by Garrus. Thankfully, they all climbed in without incident. The barriers had been lowered, clearing the way for their pursuit.

Shepard gripped the steering wheel, his face set and his eyes hard. "Time to finish this."


	27. Chapter 27: Mako Wish

**Hey everyone! This finale has been giving me some trouble, I can tell you that. I plan on keeping my same schedule, of course, but if my post is a little late next week, it's because I'm still hitting walls. Anyways, hope you like it!**

* * *

The Mako skidded around the bend, crashing into the line of geth troopers as it slid. The exhaust sputtered in protest as Shepard gunned the gas but dutifully picked up speed once more. The tunnel suddenly dropped straight down about twenty feet, and their momentum carried them far past the waiting geth below. The tires spun as they attempted to gain traction once more on the muddy floor, and the Mako careened uncontrollably away from the geth forces. Tali had braced herself with all four limbs, and that was the only reason she hadn't been tossed around like a ragdoll in her restraints. Liara didn't appear to have been as lucky, judging from the bruise on her forehead.

"How's she holding together, Tali?"

Tali quickly glanced through the Mako's readouts. "As well as can be expected. I don't know how many more rocket hits we will be able to survive."

Shepard brought them up short, jostling the passengers once more. Tali looked at the windshield, wondering what could have made him stop.

Garrus whistled. "I think Saren found the Conduit."

Ahead of them, the tunnel sloped down and opened up into a huge, open-air stretch of ground. The water trickled into a small stream, ending at the base of a mass relay. The relay was implanted in the ground, pointing vertically away from the planet. Droplets of liquid were floating all around the giant structure, giving a surreal aspect to the scene. And in between them and the relay was a veritable army of geth. Armatures and colossi all turned as one in the direction of the Mako.

Shepard didn't waste any more time, flying down the hill as the room lit up with hundreds of glowing lights, all spiraling at where they had been seconds before. The combined explosions collapsed the tunnel behind them, almost burying them in the ensuing rubble.

"Hang on!" Shepard swerved and boosted, desperately trying to throw off the geth's tracking systems. Despite Shepard's command, Tali let go of her handholds so that she could try and bolster the Mako's shields. She noticed how rapidly the relay's pulses were getting.

"The relay's closing! We have to get there now!"

"Wait, we are going through the mass relay in a Mako?!" Liara looked terrified.

The Mako was rocked with a couple of direct missile strikes. The last of the shields were drained, and one of the rear doors was blown apart in the blast.

"Shit!" Shepard spared a glance for the gaping hole in the hull. "Tali, as soon as we hit the relay, transfer everything you can into our shields. I don't care where else it's taken from. Liara, can you maintain a barrier on the hole?"

"I can try."

"No pressure, we'll just most likely all die if you can't," Garrus said wryly, spraying bullets and rockets back into the onslaught.

"Get ready!" Shepard turned sharply, narrowly avoiding another missile, and started climbing the ramp to the relay. Garrus cleared the path, blowing away the lone armature standing between them and their destination. The tank suddenly lost gravity, getting drawn against its will up towards the sky. Once the nose was aligned with the relay, Shepard cried out "Now!"

Tali transferred everything she could into the shields, rendering them a useless hunk of metal with a decent amount of protection. Liara spread a field over the hole, making the Mako air tight once again.

In an instant, Ilos was gone. Brilliant purple waves danced across the windshield, obscuring anything else as they rocketed through space. Without the stabilizers present in most starships, the journey was much rougher than a normal mass effect jump. The Mako felt like it was trying to shake itself apart. A deafening roar filled the cabin, along with the screech of metal. _Please don't be falling apart, please don't be falling apart…_

Liara fought through the gut-wrenching trembles and remained concentrated on her barrier, not even flinching when her head slammed back into the wall. Tali couldn't read her omnitool through the rattling, so she had no idea if the shields were still functioning. If they fell, Liara would have to take the full brunt of keeping them separate from the vacuum of space. Tali closed her eyes; all she could do now was wait and try to hold in the contents of her stomach.

A loud crash interrupted the mind-numbing hum. Tali fell so hard against the buckles that she thought she might have dislocated a shoulder. _It didn't work. We're all about to die._ After her sense of gravity shifted about a dozen times, the Mako finally stopped rolling, resting askew on its cannon. _Wait. We were rolling. That means…_

Tali looked around. Through one of the many cracks, she saw the familiar scenery of the Presidium. Shepard started laughing uncontrollably, his face turning purple as he swung from his restraints. "I can't believe it," Tali muttered. She made the mistake of undoing her harness all at once, falling into the windshield as the buckles released.

She tried to use her door to shift herself upright, but it detached itself in her grasp, falling outwards onto the Citadel floor. As she crawled out, she saw a metal hand sticking out from underneath the Mako. Their crash landing had apparently taken out the guards Saren had posted on the relay.

She turned around and helped Liara make her way through the wreckage. Shepard had already extricated himself, and he was staring at something up in the sky. Tali followed his gaze. Sovereign had planted itself on the Citadel tower, its giant form dwarfing the skinny structure. The arms of the Citadel were closed, creating a unique sight as miles upon miles of buildings stretched upwards to meet each other. Shepard looked grim as he reached an arm in and grabbed Garrus' arm. "We don't have much time."

* * *

"How long do you think they'll hold us in here?" Ashley asked, kicking the wall rhythmically in her boredom.

Wrex grunted noncommittally. "C-Sec is pretty uptight about their rules. No way we'll be anywhere close to free before Shepard finishes the Saren business, one way or the other."

"Yeah." She crossed her arms, leaning against the bars. "I hate this waiting."

"You get used to it, dealing with these idiots."

Ashley looked at the jagged hole in Wrex' armor, just making out the conglomeration of bandages and angry flesh underneath. "Hey…sorry about shooting you before." Wrex didn't say anything, watching her through lidded eyes. "I thought you were going to kill the Commander. And…I might have not trusted you still. Being a krogan and all. I just want to say that I was wrong. And I'm glad you didn't die."

"That's nice. Doesn't change the fact that you shot the shit out of me. Still, maybe I won't come after you once this Reaper business is done."

"Are you sure that's a smart move? Coming after me?" Ashley grinned. "I already kicked your ass once, old man."

Wrex couldn't help chuckling at Ashley's brazenness. "You talk about not trusting krogan, but you're the most krogan-like human I've met. And I'm not old; I just have centuries of experience. You won't get the drop on me again, Williams. I can promise you that."

Alarms began blaring outside the cell, and a horde of C-Sec officers ran past them. Ashley jumped away from the door. "I didn't do anything, I swear." They ignored her, much to her relief and confusion. "What do you think that was about?"

A low rumble shook the room they were in, causing them to stumble. The alarms cut off suddenly in the middle of the small earthquake, which only served to make Ashley more worried. When the shaking finally ceased, she gave Wrex a questioning look. "What the hell was that?"

"You know what that was. Time to go."

"How are we-" Ashley stopped talking as Wrex casually removed three of the bars from the cell. The ends had been sawn through already, and the hole left in their absence gave Wrex just enough space to squeeze out. He shrugged at her shocked face.

"Never know when you might need to escape. I set that up decades ago. All the technology on the Citadel, and they still have metal bars for their cells."

Shouts and gunfire sounded from where the guards had disappeared. Ashley followed Wrex, heading towards the disturbance. If this was about Saren, the C-Sec personnel would likely be too busy to bother with worrying about them.

Sure enough, as they reached the center of C-Sec headquarters, they encountered a fierce firefight between the officers and the geth. Ashley slid under an incoming rocket and made her way to a geth corpse, picking up its weapon from its lifeless hands. Wrex didn't bother securing a gun, diving straight into the enemy and using his biotics to cause general mayhem. Ashley couldn't believe how many geth had infiltrated all the way to the heart of the Citadel's security office. _If it's this bad here, what does the rest of the station look like?_ She hunkered down next to a scared-looking turian, popping up periodically to take out a couple of the synthetic bastards.

"What's going on?"

The turian remained crouched behind cover, never coming up to fire back at the geth. "I-I don't know. They just showed up out of nowhere. Before we knew what was happening, half of us were already dead."

Ashley gritted her teeth. _Does this mean Shepard failed?_ "Did you see a turian with them? Big, ugly son of a bitch, looks half robot himself."

"Yes, he…how did you know that?" The officer flinched as a bullet ricocheted off the crate they were hiding behind.

"Doesn't matter. Where did he go?" She rolled her eyes when he hesitated. "What?"

"You're prisoners, both of you. I shouldn't-"

"What you should be doing is fighting back instead of hiding here like a damn coward waiting to die, so don't pull that should or shouldn't bullshit with me. Tell me where that fucking lunatic went. NOW."

The turian straightened a little under her scathing reprimand. "I think he was, um, heading for the Council chambers."

Wrex was still rampaging in the middle of the geth, cackling as he crushed robot after robot. Ashley sprinted out after him, cursing their lack of radios. She gasped as a bullet passed through her arm. _No shields._ "Shit." She grabbed Wrex' by his shoulder, pulling him around. He almost sent her flying with a biotic fist, barely managing to control it at the last second.

"I know where Saren is heading. We have to go."

He grunted, throwing up a barrier to stop a rocket from striking them. "We'll need some armor first. I know where they keep confiscated gear; our stuff should be there."

"Okay. We'll get that, then head out." She jumped as a geth head exploded right behind her. She made eye contact with the turian from before, giving him a nod as he continued fighting the geth. They fell back, Wrex keeping them safe with his biotics until they turned out of sight. "We might be the only chance to stop Saren. If he made it here, we'll have to assume Shepard is gone."

"I wouldn't count him out yet," Wrex said. "But you're right. Let's get moving."

* * *

"Are we sure we can trust what Avina says? The VI looks like it's sustained some…damage," Garrus said, glancing back at the twitching, holographic asari.

"Sovereign is literally attached on top of the tower where the Council chambers are. I'd say that's proof enough." Shepard strode off in the direction of the elevator. Screams and explosions echoed faintly as they picked their way through the debris. From their current vantage point, Tali could see a fairly clear picture of the scope of the destruction through the wards; fires were raging unchecked all along the Citadel, stretching far up into the sky.

"We need to get those arms open. The geth are tearing this place apart."

"That's the plan." Shepard pressed the button, closing the door and starting them on the long journey upwards. Tali started wringing her hands.

"Should we really be taking the elevator? I think this qualifies as an emergency."

"The stairs will take too long," Shepard replied.

"Have you ridden a Citadel elevator before?"

Shepard smirked but didn't say anything. Several dropships zoomed by as they rose, almost as insect-like as their Reaper overlord. A little over halfway through their journey, their ride ground to an immediate halt. Tali gave Shepard an 'I told you so' look. He couldn't see it, but she knew he could tell what she was doing.

"Saren must have realized we were coming after him," Liara said. Garrus and Shepard tried to force open the doors, but they remained jammed shut. Shepard looked around for inspiration before focusing on the window.

"Alright everyone, helmets on. We're going outside."

Liara hugged herself as she looked down at the ground. "Do you have some rope to go along with this plan?"

"There isn't any gravity at this level, not once the glass is broken."

"Oh."

Once everyone was secure inside their suits, Shepard blasted apart the window. The glass shards flew straight out, spinning off as they remained suspended in the air. Tali felt her head spin slightly as she stepped out onto the wall, her perspective shifting ninety degrees. Garrus coughed and shook himself.

"I do not like that feeling. Of course, it's nowhere near as bad as hurtling through space in a land vehicle. A badly damaged one."

"At least you were not the one keeping said vehicle from falling apart." Liara held on to Tali for support as she adjusted. "It is a good thing we all have magnetic boots."

"Let's get moving." The magnets were surprisingly sophisticated, allowing them to proceed with an almost normal gait, though every step still made Tali feel as if she were about to launch herself into space. They followed the elevator shaft upwards, bringing the gigantic shape of Sovereign ever closer. The wriggling fingers continuously readjusted their grip on the tower, unsettling Tali with their movements. They reminded her too much of a spider.

A hint of movement caught her eye. Another elevator was slowly making its way down the shaft; she supposed that meant is was descending? Six or so flashlights swiveled to look at them as the cart brought them face to face. They stopped and stared at the strange sight, the sideways geth apparently either taking a while to process their presence or waiting for orders. A few stories lower, the other elevator shaft's glass shattered like its counterpart, and the geth charged onto the wall without hesitation.

Tali performed her usual technical wizardry, hijacking on of the geth for her own purposes. The small force was really no match for them, but the last geth managed to send off a rocket before it fell. It stuck the ground at Garrus' feet, breaking apart the wall that he was connected to. The explosion sent him slowly rising into the air, helplessly trying to grab onto something as he began to float away.

"Garrus!" Shepard jumped up and barely grabbed Garrus' legs. Of course, all that did was sever Shepard's connection with the wall as well and push the turian even farther away, though he now had a Commander attached to his foot.

"Why don't you run me through exactly what you were thinking," Garrus said dryly.

Shepard gave him a sheepish grin. "Mostly it was 'save Garrus'."

"You know we have a biotic, right?" Tali stopped panicking when Garrus said that. _Right…_

Garrus' eyes widened, and he ducked his body down as much as he could. A geth fighter skimmed just inches above his hunched form; he let out an involuntary yell as he braced for impact. Once he realized he hadn't been splattered on the nose of a starship, he glared down at Liara. "Anytime now would be great."

Liara quickly guided them back with small tweaks of power until they were safely attached to the surface.

"Thanks." Shepard put his hands on his knees and breathed heavily. "I hate that feeling. There should be maintenance hatches nearby. As soon as we find one we should get in and take the stairs."

Garrus nodded vigorously. "That sounds like a great idea."

They walked for less than a minute before finding the maintenance access. "I bet these lead directly to the stairs, being this close to the elevator." The door flew open of its own accord before he could approach it, and a geth juggernaut came tumbling out into the zero-gravity environment grappling with a human.

* * *

"Neither of these elevators are working." Ashley pressed the button a couple dozen more times in her impatience.

Wrex pulled her away after another minute of fruitless waiting. "The stairs will probably be faster anyway."

Immediately upon entering the stairwell, they were assaulted by an assortment of geth and krogan. Ashley looked up and saw what appeared to be hundreds of bodies moving on the upper flights. A punch from a krogan battlemaster caused her to crash down a few steps, catching herself on the railing. She pulled herself up, the inside of her helmet smeared slightly from where her nose had collided with it. "This will be fun," she grumbled.

It was fighting an uphill battle, literally, but they steadily forced their way through the horde. Brief lulls allowed them to gain several flights in one sprint, but more often they were faced with a small army. "How does Saren have enough geth to cause this much trouble everywhere at once?" Ashley riddled a small drone that had snuck around them before it could disable their shields.

"They had enough to nearly exterminate the quarians, and that was three hundred years ago." Wrex threw a destroyer over the side, and its body crunched several times on the way to the bottom. "He wouldn't need those numbers to swarm this place."

"I guess you're right." One of the big ones locked onto her and ran down the steps. It ate all of her bullets and picked her up, smashing her through a door and into a small tunnel. _Where the hell are we?_ Before either of them could continue the fight, a krogan blasted them with a biotic wave that sent them speeding to the end of the tunnel. They crashed right through yet another door, and Ashley felt herself become weightless. She kicked away from the juggernaut, blasting him with the first gun she could grab off her back, having dropped her assault rifle during the confusion. The sniper shot tore clean through its head, and its body slowly rotated around as it floated away. Free from her foe, she finally got her bearings; she was hovering hundreds of feet above the Presidium floor. She screamed.

"Ash?!"


	28. Chapter 28: Life or Death

**Hey guys! So, we have reached the final battle between Shepard and Saren. Surprise, surprise, I don't have much to say in this author's note, other than I hope you enjoy it and that I had a great time writing it!**

* * *

Shepard recoiled from the beams of light shooting out of the hatch Ashley had so courteously opened for them. She contorted herself in midair as she tried to determine who could possibly be standing on the side of the tower. Her eyes found Shepard, and her arms waved excitedly as Liara went fishing once again, bringing her back to safety. "You're alive! What the hell happened? I thought you were supposed to stop Saren."

"Obviously, things didn't go according to plan." Shepard's shields caught a stray bullet from the door, and he took a step away from the opening. "How's your plan going? Seems like you kicked a hornet's nest."

"Oh shit, Wrex." Without further explanation, Ashley disappeared face first back into the hatch. Shepard sighed.

"Wait here until the bullets stop coming through, then follow us in."

"Shepard, don't-" Tali called out, but he had already swiveled around and plunged through the hole. As soon as his body crossed the threshold, gravity reasserted itself with a vengeance, leaving him disoriented as he tried to regain his sense of balance. His defenses were still intact as he sat up, but the hail of gunfire had nearly depleted them by the time he got his bearings.

He scooted forward and dropped to the stairs. His feet had difficulty finding firm footing amidst the carnage. Wrex and Ashley were halfway up the next flight, furiously pushing back against the geth. Shepard punted one of the bodies next to him down the stairs, tripping and stalling the few enemies approaching from below. The movement jostled the other corpses, and a rocket launcher clattered to the floor in front of him. He grinned.

He didn't bother aiming at anyone in particular, choosing instead to bombard the stairs themselves. His third missile collapsed the structure, crushing several of the reinforcements and cutting off the rest from reaching them. By this point, Garrus and Tali had joined the fight, helping Wrex and Ashley on the main front. Shepard spent the rest of his rockets on large clusters of the geth further up, making sure to never hit the same spot twice. They still needed to use the stairs after this.

Shepard replaced Ashley in the vanguard, and he and Wrex absorbed most of the damage for the others as they advanced. Liara spent most of her time pulling geth over the side and letting them fall to their probable deaths. With Garrus and Ashley picking off geth with their sniper rifles and Tali constantly overriding their systems, Shepard and Wrex often weren't left with much to clean up. They fluidly adapted to whatever situation presented itself, whether it be juggernauts or battlemasters or even one awkwardly placed armature. Verbal communication was almost nonexistent as they simply knew what to do and where to be on instinct. When they finally reached the correct floor, Shepard couldn't help the sense of pride he felt as he watched his team form up on the landing. Throughout that entire onslaught, they had only sustained at most a few minor injuries. He refocused on their objective, braced himself, and charged through the door.

The next few seconds were a blur of flashing lights and the feeling of sledgehammers hitting his body. The ringing in his ears made his head throb; he was pretty sure his left eardrum was busted. Part of his helmet had torn off, slicing open his forehead and dripping blood into his eyes. Through his blurred vision and dazed state, he saw his squad moving between him and whatever had hit him. Tali turned to him, and he could see her mouthpiece lighting up, but everything was still drowning in that damn ringing. He removed the shredded helmet from his head, which seemed to help his breathing a bit. Slowly, the vibrations shaking the floor were accompanied by faint ticks of noise. He grabbed his rifle and got on one knee; he hadn't realized he had been sitting until that moment. He still couldn't understand what Tali was saying, so he pointed at his bleeding ear and shrugged.

The Council audience chamber was crawling with geth. As he got his bearings, he noticed that they were under an overhang, which was probably the only reason they hadn't all been blasted to pieces yet. Part of a colossus came into view as it walked around the central elevator. _That explains some of what happened._

With Shepard mobile, they found better cover as the colossus turned its attention on them. Shepard caught a portion of Wrex' words, the deep rumble cutting through the bell in his head. "…handle it. Watch my back."

The krogan leapt over the rubble they were crouched behind immediately after a colossus shot shook the room. Ashley muttered something and then jumped after him. Shepard provided covering fire along with the others, keeping the ground troops at bay while they ran straight for the beast. Before they reached it, a ball of light collided with Wrex, but not from the colossus they were charging. It threw him forward, and he landed directly at the monster's feet. Ashley kept running while she looked behind her, pointing above where the others were and screaming…something. He could hear it, though. Almost.

Liara set her feet and gestured at the ceiling. A large part of the concrete broke apart, rising up a few feet before coming back down. The slab collapsed the nearby sections, bringing the balcony crumbling down around it. They scrambled out of the way of the debris just in time for a second colossus to fall down through the hole.

Shepard pulled out his shotgun and got in close, keeping its focus on him while the other three peppered it with biotics, bullets, and whatever Tali was doing. The geth had a hard time getting in position to attack back. Every time it managed to get a leg solidly under it, Shepard would hound the limb until it either shattered or fell back down. Soon enough, the enormous flashlight faded, and the machine stopped moving.

"A little warning next time would be nice." Garrus poked Liara on the shoulder.

Shepard pointed at the turian excitedly. "I heard you!"

Ashley's battle cry drew their attention back to the middle. She was grappling the neck of the colossus and shoving her gun in its face, spraying bullets with abandon. Wrex was underneath the belly, systematically blowing apart and ripping out anything that seemed important.

"I do not believe they need our help," Liara said. Shepard heard a dull crack, and Liara gasped, purple blood leaking from a hole in her side. Garrus whipped around and ended the sniper before it got another shot off. Liara didn't go down, holding her stomach with a grimace as Tali inspected the wound. She applied some medigel, and the asari thanked her through gritted teeth.

"Are you alright, Liara?"

"We are facing the end of the galaxy, Shepard. I am fine."

"Fair enough." He didn't press the issue. If she said she was fine, then they couldn't afford to second guess her. He needed everyone if they were going to get through this.

There weren't many geth to clear out after the colossi were terminated. Once Tali gave the all clear, they rejoined Wrex and Ashley in the middle of the room amidst the twisted metal. Ashley's armor was scorched black up her right arm, likely from the colossus' head, and Wrex was favoring one leg. Shepard nodded at them as they fell in behind him. "Let's finish this."

Shepard was used to walking this path by now, trudging up the steps to find out what latest annoyance the Council had decided to grace him with. The burning trees and broken floors were new, as was the anticipation for the upcoming battle, but he couldn't help the eerie sense of nostalgia he felt as he approached the central platform.

He could barely make out the fringe of a turian over the top step when a gunshot made them all duck. Saren let out a short laugh. "You are determined to ensure the death of this galaxy, Shepard."

"Me? You don't…you don't see the irony there?" Shepard snuck another look, catching a glimpse of the rogue Spectre before a second bullet dissuaded him once more. His face was barely recognizable; most of it had been morphed by harsh cybernetics jutting out of his skin. He looked ghostly in the bluish glow created by his enhancements. His state of reconstruction created a close mirror to the empty husks they had encountered elsewhere.

"It is over. In a few minutes, the Reapers will return. Because of my cooperation, they have agreed to spare me, as well as anyone else who submits willingly to their occupation."

"They haven't spared you! Look at yourself! You're barely even organic anymore. They've already destroyed you, Saren." Shepard shook his head at Wrex' questioning look. He wanted to wait until Saren was good and distracted before making a move. Last time, the turian had wiped the floor with them, and that was before whatever the Reapers had added since their last meeting.

Saren's voice sounded less sure of itself. "It is true, I have received certain…modifications. Enhancements. After our last meeting, I had some questions. Now, my mind is clear. I am the pinnacle of evolution, the best of both organic and synthetic combined into one vessel. I am the future."

Shepard seized that shred of doubt. "This was the very thing you were trying to avoid on Virmire." He swallowed back the wave of rage that billowed up when he mentioned that planet. "You've been brainwashed. Completely. You came to them with questions, and they stuck circuits in your brain? You know that's crazy."

"I…" Saren faltered. Shepard slowly walked up the last few stairs, keeping his gun pointed away from the turian. He motioned for the others to remain behind. He could tell he was getting through to Saren.

"It's not too late to do the right thing. You can help me stop this." Saren's eyes were full of despair as he looked at Shepard.

"The Reapers cannot be stopped."

"They can! I can override the signal. We can still stop this. Everything you have ever done, all of the horrible crimes you've committed, you will have to answer for them. But this, right here, right now: this is more important than any of that. Don't let your past mistakes define you."

"Maybe…maybe you're right." Saren shuddered, pressing his fingers against his head. "I just wanted to save them. I wanted to save everyone. And now, the only thing anyone will remember me for is…this." He turned and looked through the window at the fires raging out of control all over the Citadel. He exhaled slowly. "I hope you succeed. It is too late for me, I'm afraid. Goodbye, Commander." With that, he calmly pushed the barrel of his gun against his temple and pulled the trigger.

Saren's body collapsed off of the walkway, tumbling down into the small patch of grass below. Shepard failed to muster any kind of sympathy as he gazed down at the broken turian. He understood Saren's point of view, certainly, and he even held a small amount of respect for the ex-Spectre's last act of free will. Still, he was responsible for the death of a squad-mate, a friend. He had caused untold destruction and chaos for millions of people here on the Citadel. Even before he joined the Reapers, his service record highlighted his cruel methods and disregard for life. No, sympathy was the last thing on Shepard's mind.

Ashley cast a baleful glare at Saren, spitting over the edge. "Motherfucker." Both Liara and Wrex looked on with mute expressions, and while Tali only had one facial expression, he could see from her body language that she seemed saddened by the scene. _Such a softie._

Garrus crossed his arms and chuckled. "Wow. You talked him to death. You literally talked your nemesis _to death._ "

"I should have let you have a go at him. He'd have offed himself in half the time." Shepard didn't waste any more time, striding up to the console Saren had been standing near. "Tali, can you interface the thing with the thing?"

Tali rolled her eyes. "Yes, Shepard, one thing coming right up." Within a few seconds, they had full control over the Citadel's systems. Tali could barely contain her excitement. "Keelah. We can do anything with this. Every safeguard, every firewall is just gone, from everything. It's a little scary, actually."

Shepard's radio channel lit up immediately, and he could hear Joker's bored tones coming through. "…there, over? I repeat, for the zillionth time, is anyone there?"

"Joker, this is Shepard."

"Commander! Holy shit, you're alive!"

"Yes. We're on the Citadel. Where are you?"

"Sitting at the front of the entire Alliance fleet. We caught the Destiny Ascension's distress call. Just open the relays around the Citadel, and we'll send in the cavalry!"

"What distress call?" Shepard looked at Tali, who quickly pulled up a second communications channel.

"…kinetic barriers down 40%! The Council is on board, I repeat, the Council is on board!"

"Right." Shepard shook his head. "Of course they need their sorry asses saved. You know, it would almost feel like some sort of karmic justice to let them die."

"Commander!" Liara looked stricken.

"I know, I know, I'm joking."

"Why not?" Ashley asked, crossing her arms. "Why not just let them die? What have they ever done for you?"

"Are you serious, Ash? I know you don't like politicians, but-"

"We'd be risking countless Alliance soldiers just to keep the very people who didn't listen to us in power. We'll need those soldiers if the Reapers ever do show up."

Wrex grunted in agreement. "Even if you do save them, what's to keep them from stonewalling you like they've done all year?"

Tali turned on the krogan. "What are you talking about?"

"What has the Council ever done for your people, Tali? What have they ever done for mine? I say let them burn," Wrex said coldly.

"There are more people on that ship than just the Council. Innocent people. Even with all of the stupid decisions the Council have made, they don't deserve death, especially considering the amount of collateral damage that will occur." Tali looked pleadingly at the giant mercenary, but he avoided her gaze.

Ashley sneered. "People are going to die either way. Better it be some aliens than a bunch of loyal, human soldiers. We have to look out for humanity, here." Her angry visage faltered when Tali took a step back from her. "I didn't mean-"

"No, go on, please explain how the six of us need to keep humanity's best interests in mind," Garrus said dryly. He and Ashley broke out into a bout of fierce bickering, while Liara and Tali were simultaneously trying to change Wrex' mind. The end result was a mind-numbing cascade of voices, the individual words losing their meaning in the chaos. After a few unsuccessful attempts to get their attention, Shepard cupped his hands together and shouted "SHUT UP!" Once they quieted down, he ignored their guilty faces and commed Joker back.

"I'm opening the relays now. Save the Destiny Ascension. Do whatever it takes."

"Aye aye, boss."

Shepard nodded at Tali, who lifted the security measures on the relays. "I hope the Council appreciates this," Wrex said, his frown indicating he did not believe they would.

"The Citadel is commencing opening procedure," Tali updated them. "I don't know how long it will take Sovereign to alter the signal, especially now that Saren isn't helping from the inside, but I don't think it'll take much time."

"You hear that, Joker? Make it snappy."

"One snappy rescue inbound, Commander."

Shepard cracked his neck, rubbing the cut on his scalp. "I guess that's that. Not much left for us to do from down here." Venomous glances were exchanged between his team, but everyone decided to drop the subject and take a moment to enjoy the respite. He leaned against the railing, and the others joined him, looking out as the arms started to slowly spread apart and reveal the cloudy, purple haze that always enshrouded the enormous space station. The scene outside was dotted with small explosions and bursts of light as the Alliance swooped in, clearing out the geth dogging the Council's ship.

"Well, the jury's still out, but I'm pretty sure we just saved the galaxy. How does it feel, everyone?" Shepard asked.

"Like I should have asked for payment at the start of this," Wrex grumbled. Garrus, Tali, and Liara all nodded at Wrex' statement. Tali giggled when Shepard raised an eyebrow at her. Shepard was content. Maybe they could finally experience a bit of normalcy now that it was all over.

He noticed a red hue gradually settling over the room. It darkened until the whole chamber resembled one of those old photography rooms. "That can't be good," Garrus said.

"Thanks Sherlock." Shepard didn't bother answering the expected "What's Sherlock," swiveling around as he tried to pinpoint any hint of trouble. He caught something in the corner of his eye, and he zeroed in on the small twitch. The light became more distinct, focusing into lines leading directly to…

"Shit." Shepard pulled out his assault rifle. Saren's body was convulsing below them, slowly rising up until his feet were floating a fair distance off of the ground. The rapid shaking flung pieces of flesh of the corpse like confetti at a macabre party. Muscles bulged until they exploded; tendons stretched taut and exposed on the skinless body until they snapped. Shepard was transfixed. He couldn't make any move to start attacking whatever it was; the scene was horrifyingly fascinating. As the last of Saren's organs melted out of his empty ribcage, a gut-wrenching wail rose out of the monster. The sound was a mix between the geth's warble and the husks' scream. The whole transformation was, in a word, unsettling.

The last of the light vanished into the monster, and it turned its destroyed face towards them. Before anyone could react, the platform they were standing on collapsed, sending all of them tumbling down into the pit. Shepard landed on his back, stunning him briefly as the breath was forced out of his lungs. Saren shot a laser out of its mouth that pierced through Wrex' shields, melting part of the krogan's armor. He roared as some of the metal dripped onto his hand, making his skin bubble grotesquely as he shook off as much as he could. Garrus fired a shot that, surprisingly, connected, creating a small hole in Saren's chest area. Unfortunately, the machine didn't seem fazed. Its hands flared with biotics as it picked up the turian, spun him around, and slammed his head against the ground, knocking him out cold. This surprised Shepard; he had figured that with most of Saren's organic structure disintegrated, he would have lost use of his biotics. _Who am I kidding, that would be too easy._

Shepard had gotten to his feet by this point and was shooting at Saren, along with Tali and Wrex, who had given up on his now useless hand and was using a pistol. Their bullets did not have the same effect as Garrus', who must have gotten a lucky shot in before Saren had deployed his defenses. Ashley was nowhere to be seen; Shepard feared she might be stuck underneath the platform. Liara engaged the metal skeleton in a biotic war, determined to not repeat the outcome on Virmire. It would seem she had learned from their last encounter, as Saren was the one being pushed back under Liara's onslaught. In a last-ditch effort to distract the asari, Saren let her get a few free hits while he charged up his laser at Shepard. Liara threw up an extra barrier in front of the Commander, and the combined strength of that and Shepard's shields kept the beam from reaching him. However, Saren used this opportunity to sneak in a blow directly at Liara. A thin line snaked its way towards Liara's face; her head snapped back suddenly, and she fell to the ground, her eyes rolling to the back of her skull.

Wrex sprinted at Saren, glowing as he used his biotics to propel himself at unnatural speeds. Saren easily countered the charge, redirecting Wrex into a wall; without Liara to keep him occupied, the walking corpse had little difficulty controlling the battlefield with his powers. He flung Tali into a wall and pulled Shepard into his outstretched claw, clamping down on Shepard's face. With his free hand, he savaged Shepard's torso, tearing apart his armor piece by piece until he started scraping into flesh while his mouth glowed red with another shot. Saren aimed directly at Shepard's chest. There would be no way he could survive a shot like that; he had to get free. He twisted and turned, ignoring the fiery pain in his belly as he fought against Saren's impossibly strong grip…

Sparks danced along Saren's spine, and his face was redirected at the last second. The laser seared into Shepard's arm, incinerating armor and flesh alike and leaving his bone exposed. He screamed at the pain, fighting to retain consciousness as he looked at the gleaming white area where his bicep used to be. More electricity arced along Saren, and he dropped Shepard in a heap, turning his empty stare at Tali, who was furiously typing things in her omnitool. Shepard feebly clutched at Saren as the turian strode away, jerking every so often as Tali found another area to mess with. "Tali…RUN!" Shepard yelled as he tried to regain his footing. His left arm flopped lamely as he struggled, sending waves of agony shooting up the base of his skull.

"I can do this…I can do this…" Tali was still typing as Saren closed the distance between them. "Almost…th-" She was cut off as Saren smashed her omnitool with his fist; the sickening crack that accompanied it most likely meant her arm was broken as well. He kicked her against the wall, and she fell over, wheezing. Shepard almost tripped again as Wrex hurtled by him, shrouded in power once more as he careened toward the monster. Saren turned at the sound of his thundering gait and casually lifted a hand. It was as if the krogan had run headfirst into concrete, and the impact set him on his back.

Shepard shuffled forward, desperately trying to catch up to Saren. He knew he couldn't do any damage from a distance, not with whatever powers and shields Saren possessed, not in enough time to save Tali. Saren lifted his foot and brought it down on Tali's mask, making a horrible crunch. He panted, drawing his knife out of his boot as he circled around Wrex, who was still groaning on the floor. Saren smashed Tali's head again, and Tali stopped flailing. Shepard tried to control his breathing, not wanting to tip Saren off that he was so close; if the turian heard him, they were all as good as dead. Saren brought his metal foot down a third time, and this time, Shepard could see visible cracks beginning to form on Tali's visor. One more blow, and it wouldn't matter if Tali survived the beating: she would simply die from exposure.

As Saren raised his leg, Shepard leapt the final few feet separating them and plunged his blade into Saren's neck. He used his shoulder to swing his dead arm around Saren, screaming through the pain as his bone slid along Saren's metal body. The appendage helped keep him in place as he stabbed into Saren again and again, tearing through as many wires and connections as he could find in the exposed spine. Sections of Saren stopped working altogether as the assault continued, hanging limply as Shepard tore apart the ex-Spectre. Finally, the center of the creature's head was exposed, and Shepard drove the knife straight into the mixture of circuits and grey matter. Saren let out a low hum and dropped to his knees, his body turning to ash as Shepard extricated his arm. Shepard's remaining energy had been sapped away, and he crashed to the floor next to Tali. He placed his hand on her helmet, relieved to see her chest rising and falling.

"You're going to be okay. We made it. We did it." Shepard winced as his arm spasmed, but he refused to look at it. He tapped a few buttons on his omnitool with his nose, activating the distress signal so that Joker could send help whenever possible. Satisfied, he let his head rest on the ground, still cradling Tali as he relaxed. It seemed to be getting darker… _Come on, I can't be dying now! That's bullshit!_ He frowned. _I don't feel like I'm dying, actually._ He looked at the giant window out of the corner of his eye.

What looked like one of the Reaper's legs, detached from the main body, was heading directly for the Council chambers. "Figures," he muttered. Still, that means that the Alliance had beaten Sovereign; they really had won. Now they just had to survive this.

Shepard pulled Tali underneath him, shielding her with his body as he waited for the debris to crash into them. "This is not how we go out. This is not how we fucking go out." Then everything went black.


	29. Chapter 29: Flickering Out

**I'm going to put most of the author's note at the end, so for now, just enjoy!**

* * *

The first thing Tali felt was the dull pounding in the back of her head. It gradually became more and more pronounced until sleep was no longer possible, and she cracked her eyes open into tiny slits. From the little she could see of the room, it looked like she was in the Normandy's medical bay. There seemed to be something wrong with her vision, almost like she had lines across her pupils…she let her eyes open a little farther, and they focused in and noticed the thin cracks in her visor. Normally, this would have caused her a great amount of alarm, but she was simply too tired for the detail to elicit much of a reaction. She tried to roll over and found herself trapped by her left arm, which was rendered immobile by a large cast. The small motion made her woozy, and she groaned.

Immediately, a woman zipped to her side, checking the machines next to her bed. "Tali, how are you feeling? Can you hear me?"

Tali recognized the voice of Dr. Chakwas. "Horrible," she replied, the full weight of her congestion settling in along with the ache in her skull. Her arm, at least, remained blissfully numb.

Chakwas smiled at her. "That's to be expected. I'm just going to perform a few, quick tests." Tali didn't know what was going on for most of Chakwas' bustling except for when she shined a light in her face. Apparently satisfied with her findings, the doctor made some notes on her computer. "You seem to be doing just fine."

"Not that I'm complaining, but why am I back on the ship?" Tali's speech was unimpeded, though talking did aggravate the soreness in her jaw.

"It would seem that the little delving I did into quarian physiology was the most extensive available on the Citadel," Chakwas said, looking annoyed. "It isn't like quarians are non-existent. In any case, it doesn't matter. We had to bring everyone back here, as the hospitals are overflowing at the moment."

Tali jerked at Chakwas' mention of the others, immediately regretting it as her head swam. "Did everyone make it? What happened?"

Chakwas hesitated, her eyes glancing behind Tali. Tali unsuccessfully tried to roll again, and dread settled in the pit of her stomach. "What is it? Don't tell me…" She couldn't say it.

Chakwas flashed a quick grin. "Don't fret, everyone survived the encounter."

Tali sighed with relief. "Thank the Ancestors. You almost gave me a heart attack."

"I should hope not; that would be a little ironic." The doctor laughed at her own joke.

Tali frowned. "If everyone is okay, why did you look so strange when I asked? Where is Shepard?"

"Shepard is out of bed, against my wishes of course. He sustained an extremely serious injury to his arm; I'm not sure he will ever regain total functionality with it. On top of this, he was nearly crushed to death under the rubble after the Reaper hit, and a few bones in his foot broke as well. But that doesn't stop him from hobbling out of here as soon as he woke up, determined to speak to Anderson." Chakwas clicked her tongue disapprovingly. "I have rarely had a patient as determined to escape bed rest as the Commander."

Tali could see the picture perfectly in her mind, Shepard limping away from Chakwas as she berated him for his senselessness. It made her smile.

"Unfortunately, not all of the crew is doing so well." Tali snapped her attention back on Chakwas. "Liara appears to be in a coma of some sort. I cannot find any evidence of a traumatic brain injury, so the cause is undetermined. Other than the gunshot wound, which was easy to treat, she is in perfect health."

"She's…she's what?" Tali could scarcely believe what she was hearing. "How long will she remain unconscious?"

"I really can't say. By all accounts, she should wake up any second now, but she remains unresponsive."

"Saren sent this…tendril of biotics at her, which knocked her out." Tali couldn't think of a better way to describe it. "That has to have been the cause, right?"

"Hmm." Chakwas typed a few more things into her computer. "I will certainly look into it. I am sure she will be fine in no time, Tali. We must simply be patient. Now, back to bed with you."

Tali suddenly remembered her own wounds, including the damage to her suit. "Is my suit intact? How did you wrap my arm?"

Chakwas folded her arms. "Now Tali, do you really think I wouldn't have checked on that immediately? There were no unsealed punctures, your mask is still functional, and I set your arm through your suit without opening it. Go to bed."

Tali wanted to argue and hear more about what was going on, but her eyes betrayed her and closed of their own accord. What little strength she had left her, and she was soon fast asleep.

* * *

The next time Tali woke, she was feeling much more rested. She found Shepard sitting near her bed, engrossed in his omnitool. His upper arm looked like hers, covered in bandages and a cast, and he had to perch his wrist carefully on the chair in order to use the device. She watched his brow furrow as his eyes flickered across the screen, murmuring to himself. Though she very much enjoyed watching him without his knowledge, she would much rather be talking to him right now. She shifted a little, instantly grabbing his attention. He immediately abandoned whatever he had been doing and stood up, his face breaking out into a smile.

"Hey beautiful."

Tali blushed furiously. She didn't think she would ever get used to him saying those words, no matter how often he did. "Hey yourself." She tried to prop herself up into a sitting position, and Shepard helped by stuffing an extra pillow behind her back. "Thanks." She instinctively tried to check her wrist for the time, but the only thing that greeted her was her white wrappings. "How long have I been out?"

"Three days or so. Chakwas said your reaction to, well, me, wasn't helping your recovery, but its apparently subsided."

"Wow. That explains the soreness." She stretched as much as she could, looking around the room. Her eyes landed on Liara's sleeping form a couple of beds away. "Has there been any change?"

Shepard shook his head sadly. "Chakwas has been looking into it, but she says it will most likely be a while before she learns anything new. The main thing is she's stable and alive. I have no doubt she'll be back on her feet soon enough."

"What makes you so sure?"

"I don't know. I guess I'm just feeling a little optimistic. Despite everything that went wrong, we managed to keep the Reapers from invading. It just feels like everything is going to work out, doesn't it?" His positivity was infectious, but Tali still couldn't quite believe it was all over.

"So Saren was defeated, right? And the Council was saved? The last thing I remember is a big metal foot coming towards my face," she said with a small chuckle.

"Yep." That simple word released the tension in Tali's chest she didn't know she had been holding. "In fact, they're in the process right now of electing Anderson as the first human Councilor."

She gaped at him. "You're joking."

"I know, crazy right? They said it was to show their appreciation for how instrumental humanity had been in stopping the geth invasion." His mouth twitched downwards when he said this. "Oh yeah, and they are blaming this whole attack on the geth. They tell me in private that they believe me now, and that they are going to take whatever measures are necessary to prepare for the Reapers if they come, but I'm pretty sure they're just telling me what I want to hear. They don't want to panic the public, blah blah blah."

"How can they say that? We had a Reaper attacking the tower!"

"I'm sure they'll come up with some story to explain it away."

"Bosh'tets. Still, I can't believe they admitted a human Councilor. It took the turians centuries longer to get that privilege." Tali tried to keep the jealousy out of her voice, the news reminding her that her people didn't even have an embassy.

"Yeah." Shepard gave her a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry, Tali."

"Don't be silly," she said, feeling embarrassed. She was not petty, and she would not begrudge Shepard for his people's success. "I'm really happy for you." And she meant it.

"It's not like the quarians were completed forgotten, though." He grinned. "You've appeared several times in the news lately."

"What? Why?"

"Well, it's not every day that galactic civilization is saved, let alone with the aid of a quarian and a krogan. We all have a little bit of fame right now." Tali imagined being ambushed by reporters and cameras and shuddered; she'd rather be quietly forgotten, thank you very much. Still, if she was in the news, then maybe her father had heard about what she'd done. _Maybe he'll be proud of me._

Shepard rummaged in a bag by his feet while she was absorbed in her thoughts. "I got you something." He pulled out a small package and placed it in her lap. Curious, she unwrapped it immediately, pulling apart the string and lifting the cover of the box. Shepard looked a little nervous. "I made sure to do a lot of research, and I triple checked the measurements, but I'm still not sure if it'll work or be right. If you don't like it, I can return it no problem." She grabbed ahold of the object inside and lifted it up, letting the light shine through it. It was a brand-new visor. It looked expertly made, but that might just be because her current visor had seen plenty of wear and tear before it got cracked. The glass sported her traditional purple, though the hue looked slightly lighter than the one she had on. "What do you think?"

Tali's throat caught as she brushed a finger along the edge of it. "It's…wonderful, John. I love it." She blinked away the tears forming in her eyes; she should be used to his thoughtfulness by now, but she was glad she wasn't. She certainly didn't want to take his gestures for granted.

He looked immensely pleased by her response, though he tried to hide it. "Good. I'm glad."

She carefully put the visor back in the box. "I won't be able to put it on until I return to the Fleet. I know they have clean rooms here, but I just feel more comfortable doing it there, and my current mask should be fine until then."

"I understand." He stroked her arm, his happy expression bringing life into his haggard appearance. "We'll head back as soon as we can, of course. The Council has informed me that I have been tasked with cleaning up geth resistance, but I'm sure it shouldn't take very long. We can stop by the Fleet as soon as that's done."

She started playing with his funny little fingers, one of her customary pastimes. "I love you."

"I love you too."

The next two weeks seemed to drag on forever for Tali. Time passed quickly when she got to spend it with Shepard, but more often than not he had business to attend to and she was left absently looking for a way to relieve her boredom. Life became considerably better when her cast was reduced and she was able to utilize her omnitool. Her old one was broken, of course, but she managed to have a new one delivered to the ship. While she had not gone adventuring to turn a profit, she had happened upon a decent amount of credits during their travels and decided to spend a good portion on her new device. This was her most important weapon, after all, and she felt no shame for investing in it.

Liara was moved to a hospital on the Citadel, where she was receiving treatment from an asari doctor who had dealt with this type of injury before. The asari had assured Chakwas that, through a series of biotic treatments, Liara should awaken in a few weeks. Tali researched the treatment plan to make sure it was on the up and up and saw that it was very expensive; she had a sneaking suspicion Shepard had footed the bill.

Ashley stopped by on multiple occasions, checking to see how Tali was doing. She was livid that she had missed the entire fight with Saren and seemed self-conscious about her lack of serious injury; she had simply been stuck under the debris. On one such visit, Ashley cleared her throat uncomfortably. "Listen Tali…I was an idiot, back in the Council chambers. I didn't think Shepard should save the Council, and I said things that I shouldn't have." She sighed. "I guess I haven't changed as much as I thought I had."

"Maybe not. But you're definitely not the same person as when we met. And you're still my friend."

Ashley eyes were shining, and she nodded and looked away. "Good. Now, I have to go do something," she said gruffly, striding out of the room without a second glance.

Wrex was still hanging around the Normandy, coming to see her every so often. She asked him why during one of their card games. "Still more geth to kill, right?" he said, shrugging. "Besides, once this is over, I'm going to have to do something I don't want to do, so I'm letting it last a little longer."

Garrus had been offered his old job back on C-Sec, with a significant pay raise at that. However, he refused in lieu of continuing to work with Shepard, still not a fan of the strict regulations that would undoubtedly get worse after the invasion. Shepard convinced the Council that Garrus, having been an essential member of his team and (as he pointedly reminded them) key in their continued survival, deserved to be paid for his services. Thus, Garrus became an official member of Shepard's squad, and the salary offer from C-Sec transferred over to his new position. Garrus told her that Shepard talking the Council out of some money was more impressive to him than getting Saren to commit suicide.

Tali had been able to walk almost since she woke up, but Chakwas had insisted she remain in the medical bay for the duration of the observation period, just in case. Shepard backed her up one hundred percent, which she found a little unfair. Finally, the glorious day came when Chakwas released her and she was allowed to freely roam the Normandy. They had been investigating leads on geth sightings for a few days by this point, and Tali was ready to take an active role. Her arm wasn't fully mended yet, but she would make do. Anything to keep from being cooped up any longer. She carefully tucked Shepard's present away in one of her many pockets and set off to meet the others.

She found the rest of the group eating in the mess. Shepard jumped up instantly, looking happy and concerned at the same time. "Tali! Chakwas didn't tell us you were out."

"I only just got released," she said, sliding into her usual seat next to Shepard.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"I've been completely fine for over a week now, and if it hadn't been for you, I wouldn't have been stuck in there for so long," she said, giving him a frosty stare.

He looked guilty as he scratched the back of his head. "I'm sorry, I just wanted to follow Chakwas' advice."

"Hypocrite."

"Yeah, I am." He put his arm around her waist, and she had half a mind to smack it away, but his self-deprecating smile and warm eyes almost made her forget what she was annoyed about. She settled for a disapproving sniff and snuggled into his shoulder.

"You're lucky I'm such a forgiving person."

"Of course I'm lucky. I met you." Ashley made gagging noises across the table, but Tali found herself successfully mollified. _He really can charm his way out of any situation._

"So, what's in ryncol anyway?" Ashley asked, eyeing Wrex as he drank from his glass. "I might need a drink if these two are gonna be hanging around all the time."

"As much as I would like to see you try ryncol, I don't think Shepard would be very happy with me if I let you kill yourself." Wrex contemplated the contents of his cup. "Although, maybe a small taste…just to see what would happen…"

"Oh haha," she said, but she looked wary as Wrex set the glass down well within her reach.

Garrus leaned forward in his seat, a smug expression on his face. "I heard that Tali experienced some complications when she was first brought here. Something to do with…outside stimuli, I believe Chakwas put it. You wouldn't know anything about that, would you Commander?"

Tali reddened, but Shepard appeared unaffected. "I'm not sure what you're insinuating there, Garrus."

"Mhm. Sure you don't."

The ship shuddered suddenly, spilling most of the food onto the floor. Tali glanced around at the others and saw her confusion and worry mirrored in their faces. "What was-"

The Normandy lurched again, and Tali heard a deafening boom resound from somewhere below them. The shift sent them flying out of their seats, crashing into walls and rolling along the floor. Her injured arm throbbed in protest as it struck the ground, but she ignored it. Wrex had broken the table in half, and he brushed off bits of it as he rose back up. A couple of fires started spurting out, and one of them singed Garrus before he got out of the way.

"What the hell is going on?!" Ashley asked, almost falling over again as another tremor rocked the ship. Joker's voice came over the intercom, sounding more indignant than concerned.

"Commander! Something big is attacking us; it's not the geth!"

"How bad is it?" Shepard was back on his feet and helping Tali up as well. She noticed that he avoided his using his left arm; it must still be bothering him.

"Multiple hull breaches; it doesn't look good, but I can still save her!"

"Everyone, get into your suits!" Shepard barked, leading the way into the armory where he started tugging on his gear. Garrus was muttering "Shit, shit, shit," as their surroundings started to fall apart. Shepard glanced at Tali, who of course had no need to don anything other than her weapons. "Tali, can you pull up a damage report?"

She did so while the others readied themselves. It didn't look good. In fact, it looked very, very bad. "Well?" Shepard asked, pulling down his helmet.

"The ship's lost. There's no way we could try an FTL jump, and several systems are offline, including weapons and defense, and life support is going to fail soon. We can take maybe two more hits like that before the Normandy crumbles completely." Everyone looked stunned at Tali's words; even she could barely believe what she was saying.

Shepard nodded briskly, taking the news in stride. He marched over to a panel on the wall and swiped a few forms of ID with his omnitool before pulling a lever. Alarms started blaring, making Tali flinch as she anticipated another impact. "Everyone needs to evacuate. Get to the escape pods; the crew will know what that means and should meet you there. That includes you, Joker; there should be one near the cockpit, so you'll be fine."

"No! I can do this!" Joker said stubbornly.

"Joker, this is a direct order from your commanding officer. Get your fucking ass on that escape pod. Joker?" Silence greeted him.

"Okay, I'm going up to get him. You guys get to the pods and help anyone else on the way."

Tali wanted to throttle the cocky pilot. Why couldn't he just listen? Now Shepard was going to go risk his life for his idiocy. Not alone, though. "I'm coming with you."

"Absolutely not." The others had already sprinted off at Shepard's orders, but Tali stayed on Shepard's heels determinedly. He turned around, his voice fierce. "Go back to the pods, Tali. Now!"

"I won't!" She hit him on the chest, a little surprised to feel a tear sliding down her cheek. "I won't leave you. If something happens to you, then it's going to happen to me too. You are the love of my life, John. I will never feel this way about someone again, so like hell am I going to let you charge into danger by yourself." She brushed by him, leading the way to the cockpit. "Come on, we have a bosh'tet to save."

She could tell he was extremely nervous having her along, but he didn't say anything more. They climbed the last bit of stairs and opened the door to find a mesmerizing sight in front of them. The command center had been opened up to space, and without their mag boots they would have found themselves floating. Pieces of metal and a couple frozen bodies drifted lazily by them as they picked their way through the destruction. Above them, Tali could see what looked like a planet made entirely of ice taking up most of the view from the hull breach. A barrier had come down between the very front of the ship and this hole, ensuring Joker's safety. He was still frantically messing with the controls, obviously still trying to keep the ship stabilized. _If we all get out of here, I'm going to kill him._

They entered his safe zone, and Tali enjoyed the sense of gravity returning to her body. Shepard strode up to Joker and placed his hand forcefully on Joker's arm. Tali heard a small crack and winced in spite of herself.

"We have to go."

"OW! Watch the arm!" Joker looked mutinous as he still fumbled about with his good hand. "If you would leave me alone, I could get us out of this. I am not losing the Normandy!"

Shepard spun Joker around to face him. "Is this ship really worth your life? She's going down, Joker! There's nothing more you can do!"

For a second, Tali thought he was going to keep arguing with Shepard. Then his face wilted, and he let out a heavy sigh. "Yeah. You're right. Help me up." Shepard picked him and supported him as they limped to the escape pod. Tali opened it and climbed inside, grabbing a hold of Joker as Shepard transferred the brittle man to her. She had just set him into a seat when she felt an immensely powerful force slice through the air behind her. She barely kept her footing as she spun around, watching in horror as a beam of light vaporized the space separating them from Shepard. He had leapt back just in time, holding on to part of the wall as the shaking intensified. "JOHN!"

Suddenly, the light winked out, and he pulled himself along the wall and glided back to the opening. Tali waited for him, her arm stretched out to meet his as he closed the distance. Their fingers were almost touching when the laser reappeared, tearing through the pilot seat. The blast slammed Shepard against the top of the wall separating him from the pod, but Tali managed to grab onto his wrist as he flew by her. For a brief moment, she thought she would be able to pull him back in, bracing herself against the opening and tugging him towards her.

Unfortunately, the beam chose that exact time to switch its focus, and the incoming destruction shook them so much that it severed their connection. Shepard narrowly avoided the light as he floated back across the room, but an explosion blasted him into a metal beam and sent him spiraling out of one of the many holes created by the strange weapon. "NOOOOOO!" Tali tried to jump out after him, but the explosion seemed to have set off a chain reaction, and she couldn't get her bearings amidst all of the shaking. Eventually, the shuddering tripped her up, and she sat down hard.

She gazed hopelessly at the mayhem outside, knowing that if they didn't leave, they'd be caught up in the devastation too. _There might still be a chance, he should have a good amount of air in his suit._ She struggled up and fell into the release button. The vomit-inducing shaking stopped immediately when the pod flung itself away from the collapsing Normandy. Tali quickly turned on the communications channel with Shepard; Joker was sitting in his chair without moving, looking stunned.

"Shepard, are you there? This is Tali. Come in, Shepard." She felt a rush of relief when she heard him answer.

"Tali?"

"Yes! Yes, it's me!" She started laughing hysterically. "You're alright, thank goodness."

"I'm not going to make it, Tali." She froze, her eyes unfocused; she must have misheard him, there was so much static. "There's a hole…I can't…" It was getting harder and harder to make out what he was saying, but every word she heard made her stomach sink lower with dread. "…have to move on, Tal...don't want…love you…"

"No, no, no," she started panicking. Her breaths came more rapidly, but it felt like nothing was entering her lungs. "Wait, we can fix this, we can, um…" She strained to think of something, but kept getting interrupted by the horrible sucking sound coming through the radio. She could no longer hear Shepard's words. "I can alter your omnitool maybe, it might be enough to help." She sent something over to his device. "Try that. Hold it over the hole." The terrible rasping had stopped, filled instead with her own ragged gasps. "John?" Silence.

"Maybe…maybe his comms shorted out." She didn't like the look in Joker's eyes; it made her want to break his other arm. She didn't need sympathy right now, they needed to save Shepard. "I can use his omnitool to track him…or wait, no, that won't work now."

"Tali…"

She angrily sifted through the data on her wrist. "There has to be some working piece of electronics on that suit! We can get his location, I know we can, and then when the rescue comes-"

"Tali, I don't think he's coming back."

"SHUT UP!" She rounded on him, trembling with fury. "This is all YOUR FAULT, SO DON'T TELL ME HE'S NOT COMING BACK!"

Joker bowed his head, looking like he wanted to crawl into a hole and die. "I'm so sorry, I don't…I'm sorry, Tali."

"HE. IS. NOT. DEAD." Even as she said this, her voice broke as her brain fought against her heart, telling her that Joker was right. She stumbled to the floor as she clutched her chest, a searing pain accompanying every short, panicked breath.

She stayed where she was, kneeling on the floor, as a strange buzzing in her ears drowned out everything else in the small pod. Distantly, she could feel Joker saying something to her, but she shut him out. If she let her brain start functioning again, she would have to face the fact that he…that he was…

Something pinched her side as she leaned forward slightly. Numbly, she pulled out the offending object, and her eyes settled on the little package. Reality came crashing back in a flood, gripping her heart with an icy hand and ripping it straight out of her chest. A horrible, burning sensation spread from the back of her neck and seized her throat, and the corners of her eyes felt like they were on fire. Lead filled the contents of her belly, dragging her down until she was almost huddled around her knees. She hugged the small box and screamed.

* * *

 **Hey everyone! And so, the first chapter of A Quarian's Tale comes to a close. I will be continuing the story, and I should be maintaining the same schedule that I had for this one, so look out for it next Friday! Thank you for sticking with this story for so long, and I hope you will join me as Tali embarks on the second part of her journey. You all are amazing, and I couldn't have asked for better feedback from the reviewers. I treasure every single one, but I have to give a shout-out to Leaf Ranger, Blaze1992, lambo105, and Janizary for being so consistent. Aftermath212, you are in a league of your own my friend. That's all I got; see you in the next one!**


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